The economy of the European Union is set to grow by *** percent in 2026, according to forecasts by the European Commission. This marks a significant slowdown compared to previous years, when the EU member states grew quickly in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic. ***** is the country which is forecasted to grow the most in 2026, with an annual growth rate of **** percent. Many of Europe's largest economies, on the other hand, are set to experiencing slow growth or stagnation, with Germany, France, and Italy growing below *** percent.

Across the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the European Union, gross domestic products (GDP) decreased in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, by 2021, growth rates were positive in all four areas again. The United Kingdom, Germany, and the European Union all experiencing slow economic growth in 2023 amid high inflation, with Germany even seeing an economic recession. GDP and its components GDP refers to the total market value of all goods and services that are produced within a country per year. It is composed of government spending, consumption, business investments and net exports. It is an important indicator to measure the economic strength of a country. Economists rely on a variety of factors when predicting the future performance of the GDP. Inflation rate is one of the economic indicators providing insight into the future behavior of households, which make up a significant proportion of GDP. Projections are based on the past performance of such information. Future considerations Some factors can be more easily predicted than others. For example, projections of the annual inflation rate of the United States are easy to come by. However, the intensity and impact of something like Brexit is difficult to predict. Moreover, the occurrence and impact of events such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's war in Ukraine is difficult to foresee. Hence, actual GDP growth may be higher or lower than the original estimates.

Euro Area recorded a Current Account surplus of 38.13 EUR Billion in September of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Euro Area Current Account - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

As of 2025, there are **** official candidate countries for membership in the European Union, as well as Kosovo identified by the European Commission as a potential future candidate. A key element of the Copenhagen Criteria - the conditions which must be fulfilled to join the EU - is the existence of a functioning market economy in the candidate country, with the ability of the country to handle the strong competition and economic pressures which come with joining the European Single Market. While the political and administrative/institutional criteria have been considered the key stumbling block which has prevented the current candidate countries from progressing towards full membership, the current state of the economies of candidate countries is also a cause for concern. According to the most recently available data, all candidate countries have lower GDP per capita than even the poorest EU member state, Bulgaria. Ukraine, the newest candidate country, which was granted candidate status by the EU in response to Russia's invasion of the country in 2022, is the poorest candidate country, as measured by GDP per capita. This represents a serious issue, as the EU has never incorporated a country which is so far from the average economic standards of the Union. On the other hand, the chance to join the EU could provide an economic boost to Ukraine, or any other candidate country, as can be seen with the fast rising GDP per capita of countries which have joined the EU since 2004, such as Czechia, Hungary, and Poland.

Graph and download economic data for Business Tendency Surveys: Rate of Capacity Utilisation: Economic Activity: Manufacturing: Current for Euro Area (19 Countries) (BSCURT02EZQ160S) from Q1 1985 to Q4 2025 about business sentiment, capacity, Euro Area, Europe, business, manufacturing, and rate.

Key information about EU Current Account Balance

• European Union Current Account recorded a surplus of 149.6 USD bn in Sep 2025, compared with a surplus of 83.8 USD bn in the previous quarter.
• EU Current Account Balance: USD mn data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1999 to Sep 2025, with an averaged value of 51.2 USD bn.
• The data reached an all-time high of 161.7 USD bn in Sep 2017 and a record low of -77.5 USD bn in Jun 2008.
• CEIC converts quarterly Current Account Balance into USD. Eurostat provides Current Account Balance in EUR. Federal Reserve Board average market exchange rate is used for currency conversions. European Union stands for EU27 excluding UK.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increased by 11.9 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• EU Direct Investment Abroad expanded by 7.3 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• Its Foreign Portfolio Investment increased by 210.3 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP was reported at 5,301.1 USD bn in Jun 2025.

The European Union is a supranational organization founded in 1957 (under the name European Economic Community) currently comprised of 27 European states, which aims to facilitate economic and political cooperation on the European continent. The current member states of the EU, in alphabetical order, are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden. Additionally, the United Kingdom was a member of the EU from 1973 until 2020, with the country voting to leave the European Union in 2016. There are currently also nine candidate countries (countries in the process of joining the EU): Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Georgia, and Ukraine; as well as a potential candidate, Kosovo. The Founding Six: 1957 The European Economic Community was founded through the 1957 Treaty of Rome by Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. The six countries were united by the aim of integrating their economies together in such a way which would provide economic prosperity on the European continent and to prevent future conflicts from arising between the countries. This was particularly informed by the French and German politicians, who wished to prevent their countries going to war, as they had done three times over the preceding century (1870-71, 1914-18, and 1939-45). The treaty is considered fundamental to the functioning of the European Union, with the famous statement at its beginning that the countries were seeking to pursue "ever closer union". The First Enlargement: 1973 In 1973, additional countries joined the European Community for the first time. Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom joined the community on the 1st of January 1973, with Ireland and Denmark having held referendums during 1972, with 83 percent voting in favor in Ireland and 63 percent voting in favor in Denmark. Norway had planned to join along with the three other countries, however, their citizens rejected the proposal in a referendum with 54 percent voting against it. The United Kingdom held a referendum in 1975, two years after joining, in which its citizens confirmed the government's decision to join, with 67 percent voting in favor. The UK had been an applicant to join the community since 1963, but had been blocked by French President Charles de Gaulle numerous times, due to his suspicions that the British were too influenced by the United States. The Southern Enlargement: 1981-1986 In 1981 Greece became the first of three southern European countries who had recently transitioned from military dictatorship to democracy to join the European Community. Greek democracy had been restored in 1975, following seven years of rule by a military junta. Portugal and Spain later joined in 1986, as the Carnation Revolution of 1974 had moved Portugal towards free, multi-party elections, while the death of Spain's long-serving dictator General Francisco Franco in 1975 opened up the space for democracy to re-emerge. Some European politicians were hesitant to admit countries with such short histories of democracy and lower living standards than the rest of the bloc, however, there was also a desire to integrate these countries and to prevent a slide back towards authoritarianism. The Third Enlargement: 1995 In 1995, Austria, Finland, and Sweden became the next three countries to join the European Union (the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 had renamed the EEC to the EU). These three countries had a long history of cooperation with EU countries, being closely tied historically and culturally to certain member states (Sweden and Finland to Denmark, and Austria to Germany), as well as having been long-standing members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), an organization which facilitates the economic integration of non-EU countries with the EU. Norway had once again planned to join along with these three states, however, its citizens rejected the proposal with 52 percent voting against in a 1994 referendum. The same occurred in Switzerland, whose voters rejected joining the EU by a razor-thin margin, with 50.3 percent voting against. The Eastern Enlargement: 2004-present Since 2004, 13 countries have joined the European Union, almost doubling the size of the bloc. The 2004 enlargement is often referred to as the 'eastern enlargement' as eight post-communist states in central and eastern Europe (Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia) joined. Alongside these countries, the Mediterranean island states of Cyprus and Malta also joined the EU in 2004. Later, in 2007 Bulgaria and Romania became the next post-communist countries to join, while Croatia became the second country from the former Yugoslavia (a communis...

The benchmark interest rate In the Euro Area was last recorded at 2.15 percent. This dataset provides - Euro Area Interest Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

European Union DS: EA: Euro: Total Economy data was reported at 19,761,918.344 EUR mn in Mar 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 19,936,268.235 EUR mn for Feb 2025. European Union DS: EA: Euro: Total Economy data is updated monthly, averaging 18,394,399.819 EUR mn from Dec 2020 (Median) to Mar 2025, with 52 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 19,936,268.235 EUR mn in Feb 2025 and a record low of 16,822,067.412 EUR mn in Sep 2022. European Union DS: EA: Euro: Total Economy data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by European Central Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s European Union – Table EU.Z003: European Central Bank: Debt Securities: Euro Area Residents: Outstandings: Market Value.

Statistical annexes published with DG ECFIN's macro-economic forecasts. The statistical annex of European Economy contains the main body of macroeconomic data underlying the forecast publications of DG ECFIN. Tables are derived from AMECO, the macroeconomic working database of the Directorate General. They include long historical series and the DG's forecasts. Countries covered are EU-28, the euro area, EU Member States, candidate countries, United States and Japan.

The average for 2024 based on 42 countries was 678.01 billion U.S. dollars. The highest value was in Germany: 4659.93 billion U.S. dollars and the lowest value was in Andorra: 4.04 billion U.S. dollars. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2024. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

European Union QS: EA: Redemptions: Total Economy data was reported at 13,885.736 EUR mn in Mar 2025. This records an increase from the previous number of 10,146.820 EUR mn for Feb 2025. European Union QS: EA: Redemptions: Total Economy data is updated monthly, averaging 1,747.099 EUR mn from Jan 1990 (Median) to Mar 2025, with 423 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 79,347.818 EUR mn in Jun 2023 and a record low of 0.000 EUR mn in May 1990. European Union QS: EA: Redemptions: Total Economy data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by European Central Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s European Union – Table EU.Z004: European Central Bank: Quoted Shares: Euro Area Residents: Market Value.

European Union QS: EA: Other Changes (OC): Total Economy data was reported at -116.531 EUR mn in Mar 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 3,055.323 EUR mn for Feb 2025. European Union QS: EA: Other Changes (OC): Total Economy data is updated monthly, averaging -2,555.918 EUR mn from Jan 2021 (Median) to Mar 2025, with 51 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 35,520.386 EUR mn in Sep 2024 and a record low of -125,789.021 EUR mn in Dec 2021. European Union QS: EA: Other Changes (OC): Total Economy data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by European Central Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s European Union – Table EU.Z004: European Central Bank: Quoted Shares: Euro Area Residents: Market Value.

Graph and download economic data for Business Tendency Surveys: Order Books: Economic Activity: Manufacturing: Current for Euro Area (19 Countries) (BSOBLV02EZM460S) from Jan 1985 to Oct 2025 about business sentiment, orders, Euro Area, Europe, business, and manufacturing.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) had a value added of approximately *** trillion euros to the European economy in 2024 with micro-sized enterprises accounting for approximately *** trillion euros of this amount.

The average for 2023 based on 45 countries was 0.57 percent. The highest value was in Germany: 4.29 percent and the lowest value was in Andorra: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1980 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

There were estimated to be approximately **** million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the European Union in 2024, with the vast majority of these enterprises micro-sized firms which only employed fewer than nine people. A further **** million enterprises were small firms with between ** and ** employees, while ******* were medium-sized firms that had ** to *** employers. The contribution of SMEs to the European Economy Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) form the backbone of the European economy. These companies comprise around **** percent of all active businesses in Europe, while producing almost ** percent of total value added in the EU. These companies are not just economically important to the continent however, as they also form an important part of the cultural fabric of European communities, with SMEs being particularly important for rural regions and smaller towns.

Almost ** million employed by SMEs In 2024 SME’s in the European Union employed almost ** million people. In Europe’s biggest economy, Germany, SMEs employed **** million people, with over *** million people employed by small-sized enterprises alone.

The average for 2022 based on 36 countries was -1.56 percent. The highest value was in Denmark: 13.4 percent and the lowest value was in Moldova: -17.1 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2024. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

European Union EU27: DG ECFIN Forecast: GDP: DD: FCE: General Government: Collective data was reported at 1,609.788 EUR bn in 2026. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,551.720 EUR bn for 2025. European Union EU27: DG ECFIN Forecast: GDP: DD: FCE: General Government: Collective data is updated yearly, averaging 932.553 EUR bn from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2026, with 32 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,609.788 EUR bn in 2026 and a record low of 536.946 EUR bn in 1995. European Union EU27: DG ECFIN Forecast: GDP: DD: FCE: General Government: Collective data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by European Commission's Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs. The data is categorized under Global Database’s European Union – Table EU.DG ECFIN.AMECO: GDP: by Expenditure: Current Price: Forecast.

Euro Area recorded a Current Account surplus of 2.70 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - Euro Area Current Account to GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.