Assessment of the euro area’s growth performance Let me start with an assessment of the euro area’s growth performance. Since the 1980s, real GDP in the euro area has grown on average at a pace almost one percentage point lower than in the U.S.
Similarly, but even more importantly, per capita real GDP growth over the same period has not only been lower in the euro area on average, but the gap vis-à-vis the U.S. has also been increasing over the last decade. Europe’s achievements should, however, not be underestimated. If one considers output per hour worked, the picture is somewhat different.