The German economy grew in the third quarter by 0.2% compared to the previous quarter, the German Federal Statistics Office said in its latest estimate released Tuesday.

    Europe's largest economy appears to have slowed after Britain's decision to leave the EU in a June referendum: the German economy had grown by 0.7% in the first quarter and 0.4% in the second.

    The estimate from the Wiesbaden-based statistics office came in below economist forecasts of 0.3% growth in the third quarter of 2016, according to the (dpa).

    The economy was lifted mainly by consumers and government spending to provide for the hundreds of thousands of refugees who arrived in Germany over the past 12 months.