( dpa ) - German economic growth slowed to 2.5 per cent last year, data to be released Tuesday is expected to show, as signs emerge that the global economy has been losing momentum.
Analysts are forecasting that the data to be released by Germany's statistics office will show growth in Europe's biggest economy slipping back a gear in 2007 from a perky 2.9 per cent in 2006.
Indeed, analysts have already revised down their 2008 German GDP projections essentially to below 2 per cent as inflationary pressures have picked up and fears have increased that the giant US economy could be on the brink of recession.
In the meantime, a batch of recent hard data has pointed to a slowing domestic German economy, while trade figures for the nation have shown the strong euro hitting the country's export machine.
Underscoring the deepening sense of uncertainty facing the world economy and financial markets, a key survey also to be released Tuesday is predicted to show the mood among analysts and institutional investors sliding again in January.
The forward-looking ZEW index is tipped to slump to minus 39 points this month after cascading down to a 15-year low of 37.2 points in December. dpa amc wjh