The European economy slowed noticeably at the end of last year as surging COVID-19 cases driven by the omicron variant piled on top of supply shortages and rising consumer prices. The result: An economic winter of discontent that may not lift until later this year.
Growth in the last three months of 2021 came in at 0.3% for the 19 countries that use the euro, the European Union s statistics agency said Monday. That was a slowdown from 2.2% in the July-September quarter.
