In the first quarter of 2012, in European Union (EU-27) member states the business investment rate fell slightly while the profit share increased, both compared to the previous quarter, according to Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities.
In the given quarter, the gross investment rate of non-financial corporations was 19.9 percent in the EU-27, compared with 20.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011.
In the EU-27, the gross profit share of non-financial corporations was 38.1 percent in the first quarter of 2012, compared with 37.8 percent in the previous quarter.