Finland Times

 

European Union Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs Pierre Moscovici gives a press conference to announce the European Union Autumn 2015 Economic Forecast at the European Union Commission headquarter in Brussels on November 5, 2015. Photo – AFP / Lehtikuva.

The Finnish economy continues to lag behind other European Union member states, according to the latest economic forecast released by the European Commission on Thursday.

According to the European Commission outlook, the country’s economy will grow by 0.7 per cent next year. 

 

According to the forecast, Finland’s economic growth next year only betters that of Greece in the entire Euro zone.

 

“The European economy remains on a recovery course. Looking to 2016, we see growth rising and unemployment and fiscal deficits falling. Yet the improvements are still unevenly spread: particularly in the euro area, convergence is not happening fast enough. Major challenges remain: insufficient investment, economic structures that hold back jobs and growth, and persistently high levels of private and public debt,” European Union Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs Pierre Moscovici said in a press release.

 

Familiar problems are affecting the country’s growth prospects: major restructuring of the industries and weak competitiveness in comparison with the main competitor countries. 

Also Russia’s economic difficulties are affecting the country.

 

The European Commission also explained the growing pains Finland is currently suffering because the government is now in the process of implementing structural reforms and budget cuts – measures which many member states have not yet undertaken.

 

Greece is a big exception; the country’s growth prospect was downgraded, and dramatically it is expected to drop to minus next year. Growth will return in 2017, if Greece complies with the terms and conditions of the new support programme.