French and German economies contracted at end of 2012

The German and French economies both contracted in the final three months of 2012, official figures have shown.

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, while Italy showed 0.9% contraction for the period.

Italy has been in recession since mid-2011. Prime Minister Mario Monti has introduced severe austerity measures to cut its debt and reassure markets that it is a safe country to lend to. An election is due on 24 February.

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.