FRANKFURT, Germany — Economic growth in the 17 countries that use the euro sagged to 0.2 percent in the second quarter as a previously robust expansion in Germany almost ground to a halt.
The European slowdown is more downbeat news for the global economy, following disappointing second-quarter growth in the United States, and could make the continent’s government debt crisis harder to deal with.
The eurozone’s growth rate, measured quarter on quarter, was well short of the 0.8 percent recorded in the first quarter.
The German economy, which is Europe’s largest and makes up 27 percent of eurozone output, expanded only 0.1 percent in the quarter, as against 1.3 percent in the first three months of the year.
Germany’s economy has helped support the eurozone through the government debt crisis. Large industrial firms such as Daimler AG and Siemens AG, as well as many smaller companies, have tapped export markets all around the world, particularly in faster- growing emerging countries.
