Euro zone economy picks up pace but Germany lags

A slowdown in Germany weighed on the euro zone in the first quarter, but the bloc's economy still grew at its fastest in almost two years as cheap food and fuel boosted spending and a central bank stimulus program kicked in. Gross domestic product in the 19 countries sharing the euro rose 0.4 percent quarter-on-quarter for a 1.0 percent year-on-year rise - just below forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists. European Union statistics office Eurostat gave no detailed breakdown with Wednesda