Recession knocks on Germany’s door

Germany's economy contracted in the second quarter, figures showed yesterday, highlighting its vulnerability to trade tensions and stoking debate on higher government spending. Shrinkage of 0.1% meant the economy lost significant momentum compared with the 0.4% growth seen in January-March. In a year-on-year comparison, it was just 0.4% larger than at the end of June 2018, with flat or negative growth in three of the past four quarters.While overall activity was supported by rising household and government spending, falling exports weighed on manufacturers, statistics authority Destatis said. "The door at least to a technical recession ... is wide open," said Klaus Borger, an economist at public investment bank KfW. Photo Nampa/AP