Euro zone sees strong rebound as lockdowns ease
Holiday hotspots are helping drive a rebound in euro zone growth.
New figures out Friday (July 30) showed the region's economy expanding 2% in the second quarter.
That was better than the 1.5% forecast by analysts.
Tourism-dependent Portugal was among the star performers.
Its economy grew almost 5% over the period.
Spain and Italy also outperformed the region as a whole.
But there was a different story in the euro zone's economic heart.
Germany's economy grew just 1.5%, falling short of forecasts.
And France saw expansion of just 0.9%, as its third lockdown eased from May.
Growing cause for concern too for consumers.
Euro zone inflation hit 2.2% in July, shooting past the European Central Bank's 2% target.
Energy prices were once again the driving force, rising more than 14% year-on-year.
For now that probably won't worry ECB policymakers too much though.
They've said previously that the spike in prices is likely to be short-lived, predicting it will fade away next year.
