Europe’s biggest economy Germany shrank more than expected in the second quarter of the year and faces a bleak outlook.
A downward revision to GDP growth in the most recent three-month period came after the country’s central bank recently warned that the economy would stagnate over the summer: A front-loading of exports ahead of the imposition of US tariffs was largely reversed, “and it looks increasingly unlikely that any substantial recovery will materialize before 2026,” ING’s global head of macroeconomics wrote.
A recently unveiled framework trade deal between the US and European Union also bodes poorly for the country: Germany’s powerful carmakers will face hefty duties, which its main automotive lobby said would cost “billions annually.”
