Selvom de rigeste bliver stadigt rigere og de meget fattige mindre fattige, viser det sig, at gennemsnitsregionerne, der hører under mål 2, undertiden oplever en ikke ubetydelig nedgang i deres BNP og en forværring af deres beskæftigelsessituation.
In fact, if the rich are ever more wealthy and the extremely poor are less poor, then it seems that the middle-range regions, covered by Objective 2, are experiencing an occasionally significant downturn in their GNP, and a worsening of the employment situation.