Economic growth in Germany reached the highest annual level in 2010 since the country’s reunification almost two decades earlier, according to The Wall Street Journal. On Wednesday, the German Federal Statistics Office reported 3.6% price-adjusted gross domestic product growth, which was the largest annual increase since pan-German records began in 1992 despite that fact that the figure fell just short of economists’ growth estimate. The data for 2010 represents a major reversal from the 4.7% contraction in GDP recorded in 2009.
The report found seasonally adjusted growth of 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2010, and growth is expected to slow into 2011 a primary driver of growth - German exports - slow from last year’s levels. Meanwhile, a separate report from the European Union found industrial output in the eurozone surged in November, adding 1.2% from the previous month. The data was seen by some economists as confirmation of the sector’s strength in the recovery, although Germany and other leading economies were seen more robust than peripheral, debt-burdened nations.
Click here to read the story on German growth from The Wall Street Journal.
Click here for coverage of eurozone manufacturing from The Wall Street Journal.