Europe Plunges Into Recession as Economy Suffers Record Contraction

FRANKFURT—Stringent lockdowns to prevent the spread of Covid-19 weighed heavily on Europe’s economy in the second quarter, causing a record contraction more severe than experienced by the U.S., but analysts said the continent’s success so far in avoiding a resurgence of the disease coupled with aggressive government stimulus should help support a nascent recovery.

The eurozone’s gross domestic product fell 40.3{f08ff3a0ad7db12f5b424ba38f473ff67b97b420df338baa81683bbacd458fca} on an annual basis, far exceeding the 32.9{f08ff3a0ad7db12f5b424ba38f473ff67b97b420df338baa81683bbacd458fca} contraction in the U.S. economy over the same period, according to…