German economic outlook gloomy, finance ministry says
2022.08.19 01:38
FILE PHOTO: A commuter train passes by the skyline with its financial district ahead of the European Central Bank?s (ECB) governing council meeting later this week in Frankfurt, Germany, October 25, 2021. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
BERLIN (Reuters) – The economic outlook for Germany, Europe’s largest economy, is gloomy due to energy price rises and supply chain disruptions, the Finance Ministry said in its August monthly report, published on Friday.
The German economy stagnated in the second quarter, with the war in Ukraine, soaring energy prices, the pandemic and supply disruptions bringing it to the edge of a downturn.
“The outlook for the further development (of the economy) is currently noticeably gloomy,” the ministry said in the report, adding that it was marked by “a high degree of uncertainty”.
“The significantly lower gas supplies from Russia, the persistently high price increases for energy and, increasingly, other goods, as well as the longer-than-expected supply chain disruptions, also in connection with China’s zero-COVID policy, are weighing heavily on the economy’s development,” it said.
The government will present updated economic projections on Oct. 12, the ministry added.
