The Austrian economy contracted by 3.6 per cent last year, the biggest decrease since the end of World War II, economists at the Wifo institute said Friday. "It was clearly because of exports," expert Marcus Scheiblecker said, referring to a 17-per-cent decrease in that sector. Lower investments in machinery and in the construction industry also contributed to the shrinking of the gross domestic product in real terms, dpa reported. "The only thing that stabilized the situation was private consumption," said Scheiblecker, whose institute provides the figures used in government statistics. In the fourth quarter, the economy showed no sign of stronger growth, with GDP growing at 0.4 per cent, compared to 0.5-per-cent growth in the third quarter. Austria's leading economic institutes, Wifo and IHS, have forecast an upturn of GDP between 1.3 and 1.5 per cent for 2010, based on increased consumer spending and an expected global recovery.
