China News Service, Berlin, January 30. According to data released by the German Federal Statistics Office on the 30th, Germany's gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter of 2023 fell by 0.3% month-on-month after price, seasonal and calendar adjustments.
Data show that after price adjustment, Germany's GDP will decrease by 0.3% in 2023; after price and calendar adjustment, the decrease will be 0.1%. After price adjustment, Germany's GDP in the fourth quarter of 2023 fell by 0.4% year-on-year; after price and calendar adjustments, it fell by 0.2% year-on-year.
Timo Walmershauser, economic director at the Ifo Institute of Economics in Germany, said demand has fallen in almost all economic sectors in Germany. In addition, the economy is also affected by a series of special factors, including high levels of sick leave and strikes at Deutsche Bahn.
Economists predict that the German economy will continue to be weak at the start of this year. Carsten Brzeski, chief economist at ING, said government austerity measures, supply chain disruptions due to military conflicts in the Red Sea region and the ongoing train drivers' strike were all factors. Germany's economy may decline again in the first quarter of 2024.
German media said that many economists are pessimistic about Germany's economic prospects in 2024. Fritz Kohler-Geb, chief economist at KfW, said current forecasts point to falling inflation in Germany and rising wages, so private consumption could pick up again.
However, a survey recently released by consumer research organization GfK and the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decision Making (NIM) showed that consumer sentiment forecasts dropped sharply in February, falling to the lowest level since March 2023. German media said that regional conflicts, crises and continued high inflation have made consumers uneasy. As a result, hopes for a sustainable recovery in the consumer environment will have to be postponed further. (over)