German GDP Growth Slows To 0.4% In 2013

(RTTNews) - Germany's economic growth eased in 2013, the latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office showed Wednesday.

The gross domestic product grew 0.4 percent in 2013, slower than a 0.7 percent rise in 2012 and a 3.3 percent increase in 2011. The full-year estimate was below 0.5 percent forecast by economists.

The economy is estimated to have expanded 0.25 percent in the fourth quarter, according to the statistical office.

Germany recorded a fiscal deficit of 0.1 percent of GDP in 2013 in contrast to expectations for a balanced budget.

"Obviously, the German economy suffered from the continuing recession in some European countries and from restrained growth of the global economy," Roderich Egeler, President of the Federal Statistical Office said during a press conference in Berlin. "The strong domestic demand could offset those factors only to a limited extent".

Household final consumption expenditure rose 0.9 percent in 2013, while government final consumption expenditure rose 1.1 percent. Gross fixed capital formation, however, decreased 0.8 percent.