The euro zone economy grew less than forecast in the second quarter, held back by a sluggish performance in Germany and stagnation in France, data from the European statistics agency showed today.
The Eurostat agency estimated gross domestic product (GDP) for the 17-country euro zone increased 0.2 per cent in the three months to end-June from the previous quarter, compared with economists' forecasts of growth of 0.3 per cent.
That was sharply off the rate of 0.8 per cent in the first three months of the year.
Compared to the same quarter a year ago, Eurostat estimated GDP growth at 1.7 per cent, compared to a year-on-year rate of 2.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2011. Economists had forecast a figure of 1.8 per cent for the second quarter.
A major contributor to the slowing growth was a German performance which suffered from a negative trade balance, flagging consumption and weak construction investment.
German growth dropped to 0.1 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms, from a revised 1.3 per cent in the first three months of the year.
French figures last week showed its economy stagnated in the second quarter.
Germany, Europe's largest economy, has been a star performer since the end of the 2008 financial crisis, and a sharp slowdown in its growth would have knock-on effects in other parts of the the euro zone too.
Reuters
