Croatia’s economy posts record contraction

Croatia’s economy shrank by 15.1% in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same period last year, posting the steepest contraction since 1995 when the quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) estimates started, the statistics bureau said on Friday.

Compared to the previous quarter, national output shrank 14.9%, the data showed.

“A significant decline is visible in all categories of GDP on the expenditure side, except in government consumption,” the bureau said in a statement.

The country expects to suffer a GDP decline of close to 10% for the year due to impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last month, Croatia’s central bank said it expected a recovery of 6.2% in 2021.

Croatia has so far had 9,192 cases of COVID-19 with 177 deaths and in the last few weeks the spread of the disease has accelerated, especially in party hot spots along the Adriatic coast.

The country this year expected to welcome only around a third of the tourists who visited in previous summer seasons, but numbers in July and August in many places reached between 60% and 70% of 2019 figures.