” “"The sound foundations of the European economy will help us overcome the current turbulence of the financial markets. But the greatest risks that weigh on these forecasts demand that the governments go on on the way of reforms and balancing, just to help the EU economy withstand the shocks": Joaquín Almunia, commissioner for economic and monetary affairs, presented today the interim forecasts for the "seven greatest EU member states", i.e. Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Poland and the Netherlands. The Executive forecasts "an economic growth of 2.8% within the EU and 2.5% in the euro-zone" for 2007: it is a downward revision by 0.1 percent points compared to last Spring’s forecast. The Spanish delegate related such slowdown with the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States. "Growth should go on according to the experts of Brussels , supported by sound foundations and a world context that is still favourable". As to inflation, in 2007 "consumer prices should rise by 2.2%" in the twenty-seven EU member states and by 2.0% in the thirteen countries that belong to the euro-zone: a 0.1% rise from Spring’s forecast, due to "the rise in the price of raw materials".” “
