Germany's economy contracted for the second consecutive year in 2024, highlighting the depth of the downturn gripping Europe's biggest economy. Germany's economy shrank by 0.2% over the full year - in line with economists' forecasts - and by 0.

Friedrich Merz, the chancellor candidate for the conservative Christian Democratic Union acknowledged the need for a “major effort” to revive the economy as his party pledges to return German growth to 2 percent over the next five years through changes to the welfare and tax systems.

Germany's economy shrunk for a second consecutive year in 2024, continuing its struggle with internal and external challenges.

Germany's economy shrank for a second straight year in 2024, official figures showed Wednesday, with little hope of a speedy recovery as Europe's traditional powerhouse is also mired in political crisis.

The Federal Statistical Office said that gross domestic product contracted by 0.2% last year following a decline in 2023. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-party coalition government collapsed in November when Scholz fired his finance minister in a dispute over how to revitalize the economy.

Germany, Europe’s largest economy, recorded its second consecutive annual contraction in 2024, with gross domestic product (GDP) shrinking by 0.2%, according to data from the Federal Statistics Office,

Europe's biggest economy shrank for a second year in a row in 2024, according to data released on Wednesday by the Federal Statistics Office. View on euronews