From the German Statistics Office:
The German economy has returned to its growth curve: In the first quarter of 2012, gross domestic product (GDP)
rose 0.5% – upon price, seasonal and calendar adjustment – on the
previous quarter, as reported by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). In the last quarter of 2011, German GDP had suffered the first slight dip (–0.2%) since the 2009 economic crisis.
In a year-on-year comparison, too, GDP grew in the first quarter of 2012: Price-adjusted GDP
was up 1.7% on the first quarter of 2011. In calendar-adjusted terms,
the increase was slightly smaller (+1.2%) because, due to the leap year,
the reference quarter had one working day more than the same quarter of
the previous year.
In a quarter-on-quarter comparison (upon price, seasonal and calendar
adjustment), positive contributions were made mainly by the balance of
exports and imports: According to provisional calculations, exports – in
contrast to imports – rose at the beginning of the year. Also, domestic
consumption was higher than in the previous quarter. This in part
compensated for the decrease in capital formation.
From the EU Statistics Office:
GDP remained stable in both the euro area1 (EA17) and the EU271 during the first quarter of 2012, compared with the previous quarter, according to flash estimates published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In the fourth quarter of 2011, growth rates were -0.3% in both zones.
Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, seasonally adjusted GDP remained stable in the euro area and increased by 0.1% in the EU27 in the first quarter of 2012, after +0.7% and +0.8% respectively in the previous
quarter.
During the first quarter of 2012, GDP in the United States increased by 0.5% compared with the previous quarter (after +0.7% in the fourth quarter of 2011).
Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, GDP rose by 2.1% in the United States (after +1.6% in the previous quarter).
Not great -- but certainly welcome.
