The Dutch economy will shrink 0.5% next year, the central bank said on Wednesday. The downturn will be due to consumers buying less, a fall-off in corporate investments and declining export demand, the bank said.

On Monday, the government’s macro-economic think-tank said the economy would contract by 0.75% next year, followed by 1% growth in 2010.
The central bank is less optimistic. It says that if the global economy picks up, Holland will see growth of 0.5%. But if the banks and consumers don’t spend, a further decline of 0.8% is on the cards.
For the full central bank report, click here