In February, economic news on the growth front continued to be quite positive in the major OECD economies, while developments on the inflation side were negative.
Business climate survey data are still improving, although to varying degrees across countries and sectors. The improvement in household confidence is more timid and heterogeneous across countries.
The situation on the labour market remains good, but overall there has been a gradual loss of momentum in job creation and the unemployment rate has stopped falling. The slow rate of disinflation is confirmed. Inflation turned even higher in several countries (France, UK, Spain).
The Q1 2023 growth outlook is mixed: a slight contraction in GDP is expected in Germany and the United Kingdom, growth is expected to be flat in France and at the Eurozone aggregate level, moderate in Italy and Spain and more clearly positive in the United States and Japan.
