German retail sales fall in 2008 as unemployment continues to rise

Special

Report:Global Financial

Crisis

BERLIN, Feb. 3 (Chinese media) -- Retail turnover in Germany decreased 0.4 percent

in real terms in 2008 compared with 2007, the Federal Statistical Office

(Destatis) said Tuesday.

The December retail trade in real terms in Germany fell 0.2 percent

month-on-month and, on an annual basis, was 0.3 percent smaller than in December

2007, provisional results of the Destatis showed.

The decline was a little bit surprising because a plunge in oil prices had

created a low inflation rate in Germany and should have boosted purchasing

power, the local press said.

However, a continuous increase in unemployment may be countering the

inflation decline, the local press said.

The unemployment rate in Germany increased to 7.8 percent in January,

continuing a rising trend that began in November 2008, according to a report

from Bloomberg.

Hit by the world financial crisis, the German economy has slid into its

worst recession since World War II.

The government has predicted that the economy may contract 2.25 percent

this year. The government has approved two stimulus packages that will inject

about 82 billion euros (about 105 billion U.S. dollars) into the economy over

the next two years.