Financial News: Dutch Economy Shrinks 0.7% In Q1

Dutch Economy Shrinks 0.7% In Q1

(RTTNews) - The Netherlands' economy contracted in the first quarter after returning to expansion in the previous quarter, primarily due to a fall in the trade balance and a greater withdrawal from stocks, preliminary data from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed on Tuesday.

Gross domestic product fell 0.7 percent sequentially in the March quarter, reversing a revised 0.4 percent rise in the final quarter of 2022.

On the expenditure side, household consumption remained the same compared to the previous quarter, while government consumption advanced 0.5 percent.

Both exports and imports fell by 1.8 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively. As a result, the trade balance made a negative contribution to economic development.

In addition, the contraction in the economy was fueled more by the greater withdrawal of gas from stocks.

On a yearly basis, economic growth eased to 1.9 percent in the March quarter from 3.2 percent in the December quarter. 

In a separate report, the statistical office revealed that household spending increased at a slower rate of 0.8 percent annually in March after a 1.7 percent rise in February. Further, this was the weakest rate increase since the current sequence of growth began in April 2021.

At the end of the first quarter, consumers bought more services but fewer goods, the agency said.

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