FRANKFURT (MktNews) - The eurozone is likely to post GDP growth this year of around 2.7%, with risks weighted to the downside, an ECB source told Market News International on Wednesday.
"We're now clearly around the bottom" of the 2.6% to 3.6% range indicated by the ECB's staff projections in December, the official said.
Asked to be more specific, he indicated there was "a consensus of around 2.7%, which I think is about right, but I would attach something of a downside risk."
Public utterances on eurozone growth by some senior ECB members had until recently "probably erred a bit too much on the optimistic side," he said, but added that "this position now appears to be changing."
The source also played down the chance that the European economy could slow abruptly to less than 2% growth this year.
"That could only happen if the U.S. collapses. If America goes into a dramatic, prolonged recession, I think that would drag European growth with it in a significant way."