Euro zone has lost some growth momentum: ECB's Praet

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The euro zone has lost some growth momentum and headwinds are becoming increasingly noticeable, European Central Bank chief economist Peter Praet said on Monday.

"Factors related to protectionism, financial market volatility and vulnerabilities in emerging markets are creating headwinds that are becoming increasingly noticeable," Praet told a conference.

"Surveys of euro area business activity and sentiment indicators have softened perceptibly relative to their earlier highs, although they remain in expansionary territory and are still above long-term averages for most sectors and countries," he added.

(Reporting by Balazs Koranyi; Editing by Toby Chopra)