By Daniel Hunter
Official data has shown that both the German and French economies have shrunk in the final three months of 2012.
Germany - the eurozone's largest economy - saw its gross domestic product (GDP) shrink by 0.6% as exports declined.
That was the deepest contraction since the first three months of 2009 - the height of the financial crisis.
The French economy shrank by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Both numbers were worse than forecast.
Some analysts have predicted France is heading for a recession - usually defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction.
However, France's central bank recently forecast that the economy would expand in the first three months of 2013.
Join us on
Follow @freshbusiness
