Europe

IMF halves German economic growth forecast for 2013

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International Monetary Fund has halved its 2013 economic growth forecast for Germany to 0.3 percent as recession in the eurozone continues to hold back Europe’s largest economy.

“Amid still elevated euro area uncertainty, we now project GDP (gross domestic product) in Germany to expand at around 0.3 percent in 2013,” the IMF said in a statement on Monday.

In April, the international organization said the economic growth for 2013 would be 0.6 percent.

The cut is the result of the persistent uncertainty about the prospects for the eurozone’s debt crisis that has affected Germany’s exports and investment, the IMF said.

Growth in 2013 “is expected to be weak,” the IMF noted, adding, “Amid strong domestic fundamentals, a recovery in activity in Germany is expected in the second half of 2013.”

However, “a more robust rebound is being held back by continued weakness in business investment,” the organization also said.

The organization further stated that the economic recovery in activity was “conditional on … materialization of the expected gradual recovery in the rest of the euro area.”

Europe plunged into financial crisis in early 2008. The worsening debt crisis has forced EU governments to adopt harsh austerity measures and tough economic reforms, which have triggered incidents of social unrest and massive protests in many European countries.

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