Berlin - (AFP) - Germany's economy slowed in 2022 but fared better than expected, with gross domestic product rising 1.9 percent despite an energy crisis and war in Ukraine weighing on activity, according to preliminary figures released Friday.
"The German economy is recovering despite the difficult environment," said the German Statistical Institute (Distatis).

And according to preliminary estimates before that, a "stagnation" in growth was recorded during the last three months of the year.

In the fall, the government was counting on growth of only 1.4 percent in 2022, with GDP declining in the fourth quarter after growth of 2.6 percent in 2021.

From relentless consumption to government subsidies and energy savings in the industrial sector, the first economy in the eurozone appears to be resilient, although some sectors are still at risk.

"The situation could have been worse," said ING banking analyst Carsten Pejeski.

The energy crisis that resulted from the war in Ukraine destabilized the German economic model, which relied in particular on massive imports of cheap gas from Russia.

The war halted Russian deliveries, causing prices to rise in Europe for part of the year. Inflation rose as production costs rose in industry, the engine of German growth, raising fears of a major economic crisis for the country.

But Jan-Christopher Scherer, an expert at the "DIV" economic institute, confirmed to AFP that "the German economy seemed more resilient than expected this fall."

He added that the industries were "innovative" to provide gas.

A study by the "Ifo" institute revealed that "three quarters" of industries that use gas have reduced their consumption without reducing production.