Euro zone economic growth slows in Q2 as estimated

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Economic growth in the euro zone slowed in the second quarter, after a strong reading in the first three months of the year, estimates released by the European Union's statistics agency showed on Friday.

Eurostat said gross domestic product (GDP) in the 19-country currency bloc in the second quarter increased 0.3 percent on the quarter and 1.6 percent year-on-year, confirming its preliminary estimates published at the end of July [nL8N1AF356].

The readings were in line with the average forecasts of economists polled by Reuters.

In the first quarter, the euro zone GDP went up 0.6 percent month-on-month and 1.7 percent on a yearly basis, as previously estimated.

GDP in the European Union as a whole in the second quarter rose 0.4 percent quarterly and 1.8 percent year-on-year.

Among the largest economies of the euro zone, Germany grew 0.4 percent on the quarter, Spain 0.7 percent and the Netherlands 0.6 percent. Growth in France and Italy, the second and third largest economies in the bloc, was instead flat.

For further details of Eurostat data click on:

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/eurostat/home/

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; editing by Foo Yun Chee)