BERLIN, Jan 10 (Reuters): German exports fell sharply in November and industrial output also declined, suggesting Europe's largest economy ended 2014 on a weak note.
The slowdown in the euro zone anchor both reflected and further fed weakness across the currency bloc, which is still struggling to emerge from a long-running economic crisis.
Some economists thought the rapid fall in oil prices could provide a boost for Germany's powerful exporters in the future, while a weakening the euro may help companies selling beyond Europe.
In November however, seasonally-adjusted exports dropped for a second consecutive month, dipping by a bigger-than-expected 2.1 per cent, data from the Federal Statistics Office showed on Friday.
Industrial output decreased by 0.1 per cent as construction activity weakened and energy production fell, separate Economy Ministry data showed. That was weaker than a consensus forecast for a 0.4 per cent increase and came as Spanish industrial production stagnated while French output dropped 0.3 per cent.
Alongside earlier figures that showed German industrial orders plunging, Friday's figures complete a poor outlook for the fourth quarter.
"Today's data provides further evidence that the German economy has not yet fully recovered from the soft spell of the summer," said Carsten Brzeski, economist at ING.
Economists generally expect Germany to post meagre growth in the fourth quarter, rounding off a disappointing year which saw the economy contract in the second quarter and barely grow in the third.
Bankhaus Lampe economist Alexander Krueger said while production - which rose by 1.0 per cent in the less volatile two-month comparison - probably boosted gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter, the economy was unlikely to have grown by more than 0.2 per cent between October and December.
German economy stutters as exports, production drop
FE Team | Published: January 11, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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