OECD: GDP growth slows to 0.6% in Q3 2017

According to recent data from the Paris-based research organization, Germany and Italy showed the most economic growth during the third quarter of 2017.    The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released new data last week indicating economic growth in Germany and Italy was offset by slowdowns in Japan during the third quarter of 2017.
   According to provisional estimates, the quarterly growth of real gross domestic product (GDP) in the OECD area slowed to 0.6 percent for the third quarter compared to the 0.8 percent in the previous quarter.
   Among the so-called “Major Seven” economies, GDP growth slowed in Japan to 0.3 percent, down from the 0.6 percent in the previous quarter. The United States and France saw marginal slowdowns to 0.7 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively.
   Germany’s growth rose from 0.6 percent to 0.8 percent while Italy’s rose from 0.3 percent to 0.5 percent. The United Kingdom had marginal growth to 0.4 percent, the organization said. In the European Union and the euro area, growth slowed marginally to 0.6 percent, down from 0.7 percent.
   The organization found that year-over-year GDP growth for the OECD area accelerated to 2.6 percent in the third quarter of 2017, compared with 2.4 percent in the previous quarter. The United Kingdom recorded the slowest growth (1.5 percent) among the Major Seven economies, most likely due to the turbulent Brexit negotiations.