Euro area Q3 2026 GDP: growth of 0.4% as France shrinks 0.1%

Growth was uneven, and Ireland supplied much of it

Real gross domestic product (GDP) is the value of all goods and services produced, adjusted for price changes. It is the broadest measure of economic activity. Here are the third-quarter 2026 changes from the second quarter:

• Euro area: about 0.4%. European Union: about 0.5%.
• Ireland: +5.5%. This accounts for nearly half of the euro-area gain. Without Ireland, euro-area growth looks closer to 0.2%.
• Spain: +0.63%. Netherlands: +0.63%.
• Germany: +0.23%. This beats the Bundesbank's call for stagnation.
• Italy: roughly flat, at +0.02%.
• France: -0.13%. French output was flat in Q2 and fell in Q1. It is now slightly below its level in Q3 2025.

Households grew more pessimistic in October

The consumer confidence indicator is a survey of how households see their finances and the economy. In the euro area it fell to -17.9 in October. September was revised down to -16.8, from -16.5. France fell to -21.9 from -18.5. Germany edged down to -14.5.

Unemployment held steady, and the euro edged up

The European Union unemployment rate held at 6.2% in September. The rates for June to August were revised up from 6.1%. France rose to 8.5% from 8.3%. Spain was at 10.3% and Germany at 4.1%. The European Central Bank (ECB) reference rate for the euro against the US dollar was 1.1172 dollars per euro on 30 October. It was 1.113 earlier in the week.

Revisions changed some past data

Bulgaria's real GDP was revised down by about 1.9% across its whole history, and its quarterly growth rates barely changed. Croatia's consumer confidence readings for March and April 2026 were revised up by about 4 points, to -6.6 and -11.4. Luxembourg's retail sales volume index for August was revised to 137.7 from 127.9. That raises its year-on-year growth to 10.0% from 0.9%.