German budget deficit smaller than thought draft budget

German budget overspending is on course to be sharply lower than feared because of unexpectedly robust recovery from the economic downturn, a draft budget obtained by AFP on Monday suggests.

Germany's federal budget deficit will amount to about 65 billion euros (81 billion US dollars) this year compared to a previous estimate of 80 billion euros.

Germany has the biggest economy in the eurozone which overall is clouded by concerns about government debt. Next year, the deficit will be 57.5 billion euros, nearly 20 billion less than feared, according to figures in the draft budget.

For more: Channel NewsAsia - German budget deficit smaller than thought draft budget - channelnewsasia.com