Inflation is pushing Germany into recession as Europe’s largest economy shrinks in the first few months of the year

Inflation plunged Germany into recession in the first three months of the year.

Europe’s biggest economy shrank 0.3 percent from January to March – after contracting 0.5 percent in the last three months of 2022.

1

The country’s inflation rate stood at 7.2 percent in April, above the eurozone average but below the UK’s 8.7 percent.

According to analysts, Germany was hit hard when Russian gas supplies dried up following the invasion of Ukraine.

Friedrich Merz, leader of the opposition party CDU, said the news should wake up German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

And Andreas Scheuerle, analyst at DekaBank, said: “Consumers fell to their knees and took the economy with them.”