FILE - Coronavirus test center employee Denise waits for clients on the famous 'Kurfuerstendamm (Ku'damm)' shopping road in Berlin, Germany, on Dec. 21, 2021. The risk of recession is looming for Germany after Europe’s biggest economy shrank at the end of 2021 and as it faces a bumpy start to this year. The rapid spread of COVID-19's omicron variant is deterring people from shopping and travel and supply bottlenecks are holding back manufacturers. The state statistics agency said Friday, Jan. 14, 2022 that output in Germany fell by between 0.5% and 1% in the fourth quarter. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, File) FILE
