Worst Recession in Germany expected since World War II

Economics Minister Michael Glos

Just like every other country on the planet, Germany is preparing for an extended recession. According to economics Minister Michael Glos, in an interview with Welt am Sonntag (a German newspaper), this recession will be the worst one Germany has seen since World War II.

Glos states that the country’s economy is anticipated to fall by as much as 2.5% this year alone. Earlier estimates showed the country’s economy growing by around .2 percent. The export-driven-recovery in German economic performance didn’t last very long and was driven by a mostly unsustainable lending boom seen in the UK, and over part of Southern and Eastern Europe.

Still, if the recession hits as badly as German officials expect, the past ten years have still managed an average annual growth of about 1% for Germany.

When the German economy began contracting in 2^nd quarter ’08, and in the 3^rd quarter, the country officially went into recession. The Federal Statistical Office estimates that the economy might have dipped as much as 2 percent in the 4^th quarter and that growth for 2008 was about half what it was in 2007.

Germany’s inflation rate dropped to its lowest level since October 2006, dropping a 1.1 percent annual rate from 1.4 percent in November of 2008.

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