Bloomberg.com: Growth in the euro region is likely to expand at a fast pace

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Growth in the euro region is likely to expand at a fast pace

French economic growth probably accelerated in the second quarter to the fastest pace in two years as consumers increased spending and the construction industry boomed, a survey of economists shows.

The European Central Bank has raised its benchmark interest rate to 3 percent from 2 percent in December as economic growth and inflation accelerated. Italian GDP growth, too, may have expanded for a second quarter after stagnating in the final three months of 2005. The expansion probably slowed to 0.5 percent in the April-June quarter from 0.6 percent in the first, according to the median estimate of 21 economists in a Bloomberg survey. Istat, the national statistics office, is scheduled to release the report on Aug. 11 at 10 a.m. in Rome.