Belgium’s economy stagnated in the second quarter of 2026, its weakest quarterly performance since the first quarter of 2021, after a 0.2% expansion in the first quarter, confirming earlier estimates. The loss of momentum was mainly driven by weaker investment and softer household spending.
Gross fixed capital formation declined by 1.5%, reversing a 0.3% increase in the previous quarter, largely reflecting an 8% drop in public investment after a 1.4% fall in Q1. Private investment also weakened, contracting by 0.7% following a 0.4% rise. Household consumption growth eased to 0.4% from 0.6%.
In contrast, government consumption edged up 0.1% after a 0.6% decline in the previous quarter. On the production side, output fell in both industry (-0.6% vs -0.2% in Q1) and construction (-0.2% vs +0.5%), while services remained in expansion, with growth accelerating slightly to 0.3% from 0.2%.
On an annual basis, GDP growth slowed to 0.5% from 0.8%, also marking the weakest year-on-year expansion since the first quarter of 2021.
