Europe's economies left reeling from the recession

The severity of Europe's recession was highlighted yesterday when the UK, France and Sweden reported sharp falls in industrial production at the start of 2009, while Germany saw a drastic decline in exports.

The worse-than-expected data show that Europe's biggest economies are contracting at similar rates to last year – when it became clear the recession had become the worst since the second world war. They highlight how manufacturers continue to bear the brunt of the slowdown, with exporters such as Germany and Japan the worst affected.

Heightening the sense of gloom, Axel Weber, Bundesbank president, warned that the contraction in German industrial production could have accelerated in the first three months of this year. In spite of his usually “hawkish” instincts, Mr Weber made clear European Central Bank interest rates would almost certainly have to be cut further from the current record low.