Economic activity recovers strongly in May and June

Lockdown measures dealt a heavy blow to economies across the region in April, but the latest data offer encouraging signs that activity has recovered quickly over the past couple of months. Economic activity in the first few weeks of June was at or above pre-lockdown levels in those countries that contained the virus and eased restrictions quickly, such as the Baltic States and Central Europe. Activity is taking longer to recover in Turkey, reflecting the fact that the downturn was deeper and lockdown measures remained tight for longer. The economic recovery will be uneven in the second half of the year, but we are optimistic that Emerging Europe as a whole will rebound quickly from the current crisis compared with other EMs.