Nico Klene, senior economist at ABN AMRO, suggests that Dutch economic growth held up well in the first two quarters of this year, but they foresee a drop-off in the second half.

Key Quotes

“The decline can be blamed on slackening growth in exports, private consumption and investment. Exports are being hit by the meagre expansion of global trade, while consumers are contending with a smaller increase in disposable income.”

“Added to this, the further escalation of the US-China trade conflict is undermining the world economy, compelling us to once again reduce our estimates for global growth. As a corollary, the 2020 growth forecast for the Netherlands has been cut from 1.1% to 0.9% – mainly due to slowing export growth and business investment.”