Real GDP growth forecasts for Europe remain weak, according to new data from the European Central Bank (ECB).
The central bank’s latest survey of professional forecasters found that economists are expecting just 1.2% growth this year, which is up by 0.1 percentage points from the previous survey.
“The upward revision for 2026 was mainly driven by a carry-over from the better-than-previously-expected GDP data for the third quarter of 2025,” the ECB noted.
Growth is expected to pick up a bit to 1.4% in 2027. In addition, the survey’s first forecast for 2028 put growth expectations at 1.3% — in line with long-term GDP growth expectations.
The survey also found that headline inflation expectations remain unchanged at 1.8% for this year, up to 2% in 2027, and 2.1% in 2028.
Core inflation expectations, excluding the food and energy components, were also unchanged from the previous survey at 2% across all timelines.
Finally, the ECB reported that expectations for the unemployment rate came in at 6.3% for 2026, 6.2% for 2027, and 6.1% for 2028.