Germany pares 2016 growth forecast to 1.7%

The German government on Wednesday trimmed back its economic forecast for the current year, but insisted that Europe's biggest economy was still "in good shape". "Germany's economy is in good shape," the report said. At the same time, Germany clocked up a surplus on its public budget of 16.4 billion euros ($17.8 billion), equivalent to 0.5 percent of GDP and the second year in a row that Germany's public finances have been firmly in the black, Destatis said.