"The COVID-19 recession is deeper than expected!" German newspaper Handelsblaise reported Tuesday that the European Commission's latest forecast shows the economy of the 19 euro zone countries will contract by 8.7% this year and the entire European Union will contract by 8.3%. In May, the European Commission predicted the worst recession in the eu's history in 2020. At the time, the forecast was for a 7.7 per cent decline in the eurozone economy and a 7.4 per cent decline in the eu as a whole.

Germany has recovered better from the crisis than Italy, Spain and France. According to the report, Germany's economy will contract "only" 6.3 per cent this year, France's 10.6 per cent, Spain's 10.9 per cent and Italy's 11.2 per cent.

The report also said data from May and June suggested the worst recession in the European Union was likely to be over and a recovery could emerge in the second half of the year. The European Commission expects the eurozone economy to grow by 6.1 per cent in 2021; Across the European Union, growth was 5.8%. In its May report, the Commission's estimates were 6.3% and 6.1% respectively. The huge European economic and investment plan put forward by The President of the European Commission, Von der Leyen, should help next year.