There are lots of different ways of measuring the terrible state of the global economy. The collapse in overall output. The fall in trade as ports and airports empty. The trillions printed by central banks, and the soaring price of gold as investors lose faith in a recovery. But one is surely this: keeping the drop in GDP in single digits actually looks pretty good.
Sweden this morning reported its flash estimate of second quarter GDP. Output was down by 8.6 per cent compared with the first quarter, and 8.2 per cent compared with the same quarter last year. It was, as the release helpfully pointed out, the worst result it had recorded since it started this series of statistics in 1980.
Without the Scandinavian reserve, however, it could have put a different spin on the figures.
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