The German economy expanded a little in the second quarter as exports rose, according to data released by Destatis, ShareCast News reported. Gross domestic product rose 0.4% from the previous quarter, falling a little short of expectations for 0.5% growth. Destatis said exports rose much more than imports, mostly on the back of a weak euro, but inventories declined. “Not a great deal of detail is available on German growth in this first release, but we know from monthly data that industrial sector output was flat month-on-month, so growth will have come predominantly from the services sector,” said BNP Paribas analyst Dominic Bryant. “This is consistent with some surveys for the service sector, which picked up notably during the quarter. Given the uptrend in German factory orders it is also likely that the industrial sector will add more to growth in Q3.”
