FRANKFURT (MNI)- The German economy is likely to have stalled or
even contracted slightly in the final quarter of 2011 and is not
expected to pick up in the first quarter of this year, the Bundesbank
said in its monthly report, released on Monday.
“The economic growth in Germany is likely to have come to a
standstill in the fourth quarter of 2011. After strong economic growth
over the summer, even a small contraction of GDP cannot be excluded,”
the report said.
The German central bank has previously said that the German economy
is likely to pick-up after a flat first quarter to post 0.6% GDP growth
for the full year. The forecast is subject to high uncertainty and no
further exacerbation of the Eurozone crisis.
The report noted that Germany’s key industrial sector was
especially hard hit by the global slowdown and Eurozone tensions in the
final quarter of 2011. While private consumption is likely to have been
flat, the construction sector should have benefitted further from rising
demand.
–Frankfurt bureau; +49-69-720142; jtreeck@marketnews.com
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