FRANKFURT (AFP) - The German government expressed annoyance at the Bundesbank following a press report which suggested the German central bank was sceptical about Berlin's growth forecast for next year.
In its Friday edition, the Financial Times Deutschland had quoted unnamed sources as saying the Bundesbank was expecting the German economy, the biggest in the 12-country eurozone, to grow by just 1.5 percent in 2005, slower than the growth rate of 1.7-1.8 percent reportedly being targetted by the government.
Economy Minister Wolfgang Clement is scheduled to publish government's updated growth forecasts on Monday. FT Deutschland said it had information that Berlin was forecasting growth of 1.7-1.8 percent, compared with an earlier forecast of 1.5-2.0 percent.
Asked to comment on the report at a news briefing in Berlin, government spokesman Bela Anda said it was "outrageous" that the Bundesbank felt compelled to comment "even before the economy minister has presented his forecasts."
Anda then quickly toned down his indignation.
"It wasn't intended a reprimand. I simply meant to say unusual," the spokesman said, insisting that relations between the government and the Bundesbank were "good".
An increasing number of observers believe that the government's growth projections are over-optimistic, amid increasing signs that the upturn seen earlier this year -- which has been driven primarily by robust exports -- might be losing momentum as global growth also slows.
Earlier this week, Germany's top six economic research institutes announced they were anticipating a slowdown in German growth next year to 1.5 percent from an expected 1.8 percent this year.
Nevertheless, the picture has been complicated by the fact that a fewer number of public holidays fell on weekdays this year, but that number would increase again next year, automatically clipping growth.
Adjusted for the calendar effects, the Bundesbank was forecasting growth of around 1.5 percent both this year and next year, FT Deutschland said.
10/22/2004 - 12:37 GMT - AFP