The head of European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, said to EU leaders on Friday that the eurozone economy is experiencing a tremendous decline and urged the bloc to act decisively to speed recovery. EU leaders held a video conference on Friday to discuss ways of propelling consumption and investment in the economy.

According to Lagarde, EU GDP is expected to shrink by 13% in 2Q YoY while yearly fall can be as much as 8.7% in 2020. Thanks to lower base effect, subsequent economic rebound in 2021 is expected to lead to 5.1% expansion in GDP.

One of the most interesting comments from Lagarde was the statement that consequences of the worst in history economic downturn for the labor market has yet to appear, and the unemployment rate in the eurozone could reach 10%.

Lagarde called on leaders to quickly agree on a recovery plan to accelerate economic recovery, and said financial markets are relatively calm due to expectations that the bloc will act to show that the EU is back in business, sources said.

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