Migrants have been a driver of economic recovery in the eurozone, according to the European Central Bank's monthly economic bulletin.
"Immigration has made a large positive contribution to the working age population during the recovery, reflecting primarily the inflow of workers from new EU Member States," the European Central Bank (ECB) said in its economic bulletin published on Thursday.
"This is likely to also have had a significant impact on the labor force, particularly in Germany and Italy," it added.
Growth rate of labor force slows
Although the labor supply in the euro area "is continuing to rise, over the past decade there has been moderation in the rate at which it is increasing," the ECB said. Immediately following the Great Recession, "the average growth rate of the labor force moderated in all of the largest euro area countries compared with the pre-crisis period," it continued.
"The weakening in labor force developments was most dramatic in Spain, which can be explained primarily by the effect of changing migration flows. Before the crisis, there was significant net inward migration to Spain, which reversed after Spain experienced a marked increase in its unemployment rate."
Companies owned by immigrants in Italy grow
Last month a study by Intesa Sanpaolo bank found that the number of companies set up by immigrants in Italy showed a two-figure growth during the economic crisis, while that of Italian entrepreneurs contracted.
"During the period 2011-15, an overall 0.9 percent drop in companies present is the synthesis of a contraction of 2.9 percent of Italian companies and 21.3 percent of the companies established by migrants," the study said. The success of foreigners in Italy is especially the result of their ability to react to the crisis, for example by increasing sales. In recent years and particularly during the great recession the phenomenon has consolidated further: by the end of 2015, companies run by immigrants accounted for 9.1 percent of the total.