The German economy got a damper in the third quarter. Gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.2 percent compared with the previous quarter, mainly due to falling exports, as the Federal Statistical Office in Wiesbaden announced today. This is the first decline since the first quarter of 2015 compared to the previous quarter.
In the second quarter of 2018, the economy had risen by 0.5 percent, in the first quarter, the growth was 0.4 percent. The decline in the months of July to September is „mainly due to the external development,“ said the statisticians. According to preliminary calculations, there were fewer exports in the third quarter of 2018. By contrast, imports were up on the previous quarter.
Domestic signals were mixed: while more was invested in both equipment and construction than in the previous quarter, private consumption declined. Government consumer spending was slightly above the level of the previous quarter.
