Germany underlined its status as ‘the sick man of Europe’ as its once-mighty industrial sector collapsed again.
In a report that fuelled fears that Europe’s largest economy is facing another quarter of contraction, official figures showed output fell 2.4 percent in August.
Feeling of decline: Official figures show output fell 2.4 percent in August
That was much worse than the 0.3 percent economists had expected and cast a new shadow over the eurozone as a whole.
Carsten Brzeski of the Dutch banking group ING called the figures “a cold shower for anyone hoping for a quick recovery”.
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