A squeeze on lending to home buyers and businesses that followed the US subprime crisis has shown slight signs of easing in the last three months, the European Central Bank said on Friday.
Germany's trade surplus surged in June, data released on Thursday showed, offering some relief after a bleak series of figures pointing to a severe economic slowdown.
German business sentiment plunged to a 34-month low point in July, a key index showed on Thursday, underscoring that high oil prices and a strong euro are throttling Europe's biggest economy.
The German Finance Ministry said on Monday it expects the world’s third largest economy to cool considerable after growth in the second quarter slowed dramatically.
German industrial orders fell in May for the sixth month in a row, official figures showed Friday, prompting analysts to voice alarm and declare an end to a vital boom in the manufacturing sector.
The European Central Bank raised its key interest rate as expected by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.25 percent on Thursday to combat surging inflation in Germany and the rest of the euro zone.
German inflation picked up speed in June, jumping to an annual 3.3 percent, the fastest pace since 1993, from 3.0 percent in May, official figures showed Friday.
Germany's key business confidence index dropped sharply in June, underscoring the damaging effect of persistently high oil prices on Europe's biggest economy.
German investor confidence has plunged to the lowest level since late 1992, a survey showed on Tuesday, due to record oil prices and expectations of higher borrowing costs in the euro zone.
German industrial production declined further in April, the ministry of industry said Friday, another sign that Europe's biggest economy is slowing down.
Germany's central bank said Friday that growth in Europe's largest economy might be more subdued over the coming months, but it expects a pick-up later as global conditions improve and inflation abates.
German business confidence jumped unexpectedly in May, a closely watched survey showed on Wednesday, underscoring the dogged resilience of Europe's biggest economy.
The Bundesbank said on Monday it expected only modest growth for Germany in the coming months following the scorching rate of expansion the world’s third-largest economy notched in the first quarter of 2008.
The German economy got off to a stronger-than-expected start to the year, growing 1.5 percent in the first quarter, preliminary data from the Federal Statistics Office showed on Thursday.
Consumer sentiment is improving in Germany just as Europe's biggest economy appears to feeling the global slowdown, according to a widely watched survey on Monday.
German business confidence posted a steeper-than-expected decline on Thursday, just as the government forecast a slowdown in Europe's biggest economy next year.
Six leading German economic institutes issued an upbeat outlook for Europe's largest economy on Thursday, forecasting 1.8 percent growth for 2008, easing inflation and all but ruling out a recession.
