Germany Standing Still: GDP Not Growing, Confidence Falling

The economy of Germany, the “locomotive of Europe,” shows no signs of recovery. GDP grew by 0% in the second quarter, remaining unchanged from the first three months of the year. Moreover, compared to the same period in 2022, there was a 0.2% decrease.

It looks like things won’t change, at least in the short term. The index of the German Institute for Economic Research IFO, which measures the climate of confidence in German companies, also turned out to be worse than expected. In mid-August, this figure fell to 85.7 points from 87.4 in July. “This is the fourth consecutive decline when assessments of the current situation have dropped to their lowest level since August 2020. Moreover, companies are increasingly pessimistic about the coming months. The German economy has not yet emerged from the crisis,” the IFO said in a statement.

The fall in confidence affects both the manufacturing and trade sectors, and also extends to the service sector and construction.