The United States reprimanded Germany on Wednesday, saying its exporting prowess was hampering economic stability in Europe and hurting the global economy.
The Obama administration has long called for countries with trade surpluses, such as Germany and China, to do more to spur domestic demand.
But in a semiannual report to Congress on international economic policies, the criticism of Germany stood out for its stark language and prominent placement.
"Germany's anaemic pace of domestic demand growth and dependence on exports have hampered" efforts to make the euro zone economy more stable, the Treasury said in the report.
"The net result has been a deflationary bias for the euro area, as well as for the world economy."
For years, the semi-annual report has been an occasion for the U.S. government to publicly criticize China's foreign exchange practices, but this time Germany appeared to eclipse the Asian nation in terms of prominence.
The Treasury noted, for example, that Germany's net exports of goods, services and capital exceeded those of China in 2012. The policy recommendations for Germany also topped the list of actions Washington feels are necessary to make the global economy more stable.
Economists say stronger domestic demand in Germany would suck in more goods from countries on the southern rim of the euro zone, which continue to suffer from an economic crisis.
As has been customary for over a decade, the Treasury stopped short of formally labelling China a currency manipulator.
Source: Reuters
