Economics
The Virus Isn’t the Only Problem for Germany’s Nose-Diving Economy
- First quarter GDP data is seen showing worst drop since 2009
- Export-reliant economic model was already creaking beforehand
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Just as Germany starts counting the cost of the coronavirus’s damage to economic growth, officials will get another glimpse of the shaky foundations it was built on.
Gross-domestic-product data this week will reflect not only how Europe’s biggest economy began a nosedive in March, but also that its stalling engine was already in need of repair -- a legacy of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s rule that will probably outlast the outbreak.