Almost all Dutch regions' economies doing better than pre-Covid

In most Dutch regions, the economy had fully recovered from the coronavirus crisis in the third quarter, according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS). Only the economies in what the stats office calls Overig Groningen - almost the entire province except for the region around Delfzijl - and Haarlemmermeer are still smaller than before the pandemic. 

The contraction can be explained by the reduced gas extraction in Groningen and the blow to the aviation sector in Haarlemmermeer. In the latter region, where Schiphol Airport is located, the economy is still 9 percent smaller. In Groningen, it is 2 percent. If gas extraction is excluded, the economy in the northern province grew by 5 percent.

The total Dutch economy was 2.3 percent larger than in the same quarter of 2019. Regions with a lot of industry experienced the strongest growth. This includes, for example, IJmond, where Tata Steel is located, and Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, with the industrial area around Terneuzen. Both regions grew by about 7 percent compared to 2019. The region around Eindhoven also did well with economic growth of about 5 percent. The economy of the Amsterdam region is the largest in terms of size.

In the third quarter, sectors that were previously hit hard, like hospitality and travel, were the main drivers of the economic growth. Information and communication and business services also grew.