The German banking association expects a drastic economic downturn

According to the German Banking Association, gross domestic product in Germany could fall by 4-5 percent this year as a result of measures to curb the coronary epidemic.

At the same time, Stefan Schneider, chief economist at the Bundesverband deutscher Banken (BdB), noted that economic activity could return to strong momentum in the third quarter and that annual GDP growth could reach 2 percent in 2021.

“These are dramatic numbers, but it’s not the end of the world,” Stefan Schneider said at a phone conference Wednesday about the banking union’s forecast. Germany’s GDP last fell by 5 percent in 2009 as a result of the global economic crisis. (MTI)