HOUSEHOLD demand and investment were the two biggest contributors to economic growth in the eurozone in the first quarter, data showed Tuesday, as the zone’s statistic office confirmed its earlier growth estimates.

    Eurostat confirmed that gross domestic product in the 19 countries sharing the eurozone in the January-March period rose 0.4 percent quarter on quarter for a 1 percent year-on-year gain — in line with market expectations.

    Household consumption, long the more sluggish component of eurozone growth, now contributed the most — 0.3 percentage points — to the overall quarterly result.

    Investment added another 0.2 percentage points and growing inventories and government spending another 0.1 point each.

    But the contribution from external trade was negative as imports grew twice as fast as exports on a quarterly basis, capping overall quarterly GDP growth at 0.4 percent.

    The eurozone’s biggest economy Germany grew 0.3 percent quarter on quarter, second biggest France expanded 0.6 percent, third biggest Italy 0.3 percent and fourth biggest Spain surged 0.9 percent.

    The economies of Greece, Estonia, Lithuania and Finland contracted.(SD-Agencies)