According to official numbers released on Friday, Denmark’s GDP shrank for the second time in a row in the third quarter, primarily due to a slowdown in the pharmaceutical business.
According to Statistics Denmark, the nation’s gross domestic product decreased by 0.7 percent from July to September when compared to the same three-month period last year.
It came after the economy shrank by 0.7 percent in the second quarter, which sent the nation into a technical recession—two quarters of contraction in a row.
“The decline in the third quarter was primarily due to a decline in manufacturing, with the pharmaceutical industry contributing to the decline,” Statistics Denmark said in a statement.
Over the first six months of the year, Denmark’s GDP had actually grown by 1.7 percent year-on-year.
This was in large part thanks to the pharmaceutical industry and in particular Novo Nordisk — Europe’s biggest company by market capitalisation — which has seen a boost in sales of its anti-obesity treatments.
However, “today’s figures show an increase in private consumption,” noted Las Olsen, chief economist at Danske Bank, in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“Income is rising even more. There is potential for more spending when and if consumer sentiment improves,” Olsen continued.