Germany to halve growth forecast

The German government will on Wednesday halve its estimate for economic growth this year, business daily Handelsblatt reported, as Europe's debt crisis takes its toll on its top economy. The government will forecast output growth of "around 0.5 percent" for 2013, when it publishes its annual economic report on Wednesday, Handelsblatt said. Previously Berlin's target had been for 1.0-percent growth in 2013. Germany has proved highly resistant to the three-year debt crisis that has tipped many of its European partners into deep recessions. But as weaker economies both globally and in Europe have reduced demand for Germany's precious exports, even the European powerhouse has begun to totter. After strong growth of 0.5 percent in the first quarter of 2012, the economy has begun to slow, registering 0.3 percent in the second quarter and 0.2 percent in the third. Economy Minister Philipp Roesler said last Monday that GDP would be "around three quarters" of a percentage point in 2012. Germany was expected to release GDP data later Tuesday. Nevertheless, most analysts see this as a temporary blip and business and consumer confidence indicators point to a revival in the second half of the year, a view reportedly shared in Berlin. "The government expects average economic growth of around 0.5 percent this year," the annual report will say according to Handelsblatt. "The forecast is supported by the idea that after a weak start, the German economy will again grow quicker in the second half of the year," Handelsblatt quoted the report as saying.