However, the Italian economy contracted in the fourth quarter of 2022, making it likely that it will enter into a technical recession this year.
The data from Italy's National Statistics Institute (ISTAT) provides the first full-year picture of the country's economic performance last year, a period blighted by high inflation, energy shortages, and trade problems sparked by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Although the 3.9-percent growth rate for the full year beats the forecast in the Italian government's 2022-23 economic blueprint, the 0.1 percent contraction in the fourth quarter of 2022 broke a trend of seven consecutive quarters of positive economic growth, ISTAT said.
This means that if the economy shrinks again this quarter, as widely anticipated, Italy will enter into a recession, which is defined by back-to-back quarters of negative growth.
However, despite the contraction over the last three months of the year, Italy's economy was still 1.7 percent larger than during the same period a year earlier.
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