International Economic
Trio of German data signals economic slowdown in first quarter
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Thursday 30 Apr 2026
(Sharecast News) - A trio of leading economic indicators in Germany pointed to an economic slowdown over recent months, with GDP growth easing, retail sales falling sharply and unemployment rising to a 15-year high.
The German economy grew by 0.3% over the first three months of 2026, marking a slight acceleration from the 0.2% growth registered in the fourth quarter, according to the Federal Statistical Office known as Destatis.
However, on a year-on-year basis, growth slowed to 0.3% from 0.4%, though this was in line with economists' predictions.
Destatis also reported that German retail sales fell much more than expected in March, dropping 2.0% month-on-month amid heightened geopolitical conflict, which has the potential to spill over into price pressures for consumers.
This was a much sharper decline than the revised 0.3% fall seen in February and the steepest monthly decrease since October 2022. The consensus forecast was for a fall of just 0.1%.
Meanwhile, the joblessness rate held steady at 6.4%, surprising analysts who had pencilled in a drop to 6.3%, staying at its highest level since July 2020.
However, the number of unemployed people topped the 3.0m mark for the first time since March 2011, after rising by 20,000 over the month.
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