Euro-Area Growth Beats Forecasts Despite German Contraction
- German GDP drop contrasts with solid growth in other economies
- Spanish inflation slowed more than expected to 2.9% in July
Germany’s economy contracted because of a drop in investment in equipment and buildings, according to the federal statistics agency.
Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The euro-area economy grew more than expected in the second quarter as resilient expansion in key countries allowed the region to shrug off Germany’s surprise contraction.
Gross domestic product rose 0.3% in the three months through June, sustaining the same pace as it did at the start of the year. That exceeded the 0.2% median forecast of economists as both France and Spain beat estimates and Italy kept growing, offsetting a 0.1% drop in Germany.