Greece to outpace major European economies with 1.8% growth, DBRS says

Greece continues to outperform Europe in terms of growth, according to the updated forecasts released by credit rating agency DBRS.

The credit rating agency said that in Europe, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom are expected to grow at a slow pace of 0.5-1% in 2026, with growth expected to increase only slightly to 0.7-1.2% in 2027, CE Report quotes ANA-MPA.

However, the Iberian Peninsula continues to outperform, along with Greece, parts of Central and Eastern Europe and some Nordic countries. Specifically, for Greece, it forecasts growth of 1.8% in both 2026 and 2027.

Despite the uncertainty created by geopolitical risks and high oil prices, labour market conditions remain relatively strong, DBRS said. Forecasts point to stable or gradually declining unemployment rates in most major advanced economies and in China. For Greece, the agency forecasts an unemployment rate of 8.3% in 2026 and 7.8% in 2027.

DBRS noted that forecast revisions were mixed during the third quarter of 2026. Global energy prices were on a downward trend for most of the third quarter, before rising sharply again in September as Houthi attacks further undermined confidence in the availability of oil supplies from the Middle East. However, long-term interest rates continue to rise, while central banks’ policy rates are also providing less support to economic activity. Inflation remains above policy targets in many countries, while unemployment remains at historically moderate or low levels.

The US remains an exception in terms of growth among the major advanced economies, while India and China stand out among emerging markets. Global economic and financial conditions are largely the result of what we describe as a ‘technology equipment race’, characterised by strong demand for investment in technology, particularly artificial intelligence, the energy infrastructure needed to support it, as well as the aerospace and defence industries, DBRS added.

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