Both the German and the French economies grew by 0.3 percent
between April and June, according to official data released by the
two countries.
The last time France and Germany saw their economies grow was in
the first quarter of 2008, and today’s data has surprised
economists, who were expecting to see the recession to
continue.
Go deeper with GlobalData
“The data is very surprising. After four negative
quarters, France is coming out of the red,” said Christine Lagarde,
France’s finance and economy minister.
In the first quarter of the year, French GDP fell by 1.3 percent
while German GDP fell 3.5 percent.
Several economists now expect that the German economy will
continue to grow in the coming months, as Andreas Rees, chief
German economist at UniCredit, explained:
“The recession has ended, and it has ended sooner than we all
thought. We expect to see growth of 1 percent in the third quarter,
which is very strong for Germany, and I wouldn’t rule out the
chance of even better growth.”
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataThis is good news for European lessors, who can now begin to
expect more investment by German and French businesses.
Indeed, last month, research from
Siemens Financial Services said that average IT replacement cycles
had remained steady in the UK, France and Germany, despite the
recession.
The research also revealed that more and more companies are also
turning to alternative methods of funding new equipment, such as
leasing and asset finance.
Jason T Hesse
