Germany, often referred to as the "tired man" of Europe, has been acknowledged as such by its finance minister.

• Germany's finance minister, Christian Lindner, addressed World Economic Forum delegates and stated that he knows what some of them are thinking, but Germany is not the sick man.
• Despite avoiding recession, the German economy experienced a 0.3% contraction in 2023.

Germany's finance minister presented a new analogy for his country's struggling economy on Friday, after months of discussions about whether Europe's economic powerhouse had become the "sick man of Europe."

Christian Lindner, speaking at a Bloomberg panel in Davos, Switzerland, on Friday, addressed the thought that some people might believe Germany is a sick man, stating, "Germany is not the sick man."

Since 2012, Germany has experienced great success, but this year has been a crisis, leaving the country feeling drained and exhausted, as if it hasn't had enough rest.

Last year, the "sick man of Europe" resurfaced as Germany's economy narrowly avoided recession, shrinking by 0.3% year on year. Despite this, the country's manufacturing output, excluding construction, dropped by 2% in 2023.

In 1998, Germany's economy was referred to as the "sick man" due to the high costs of post-reunification.

Growth ‘wake-up call’

Lindner stated that "low-growth expectations serve as a wake-up call, and now we have a good cup of coffee, which implies the need for structural reforms, followed by continued economic success."

According to Capital Economics, the German economy is predicted to experience a prolonged slump and no growth in 2024, based on the latest data.

At the end of last year, Germany experienced a budgetary crisis due to a court ruling that its redistribution of unused debt was unlawful, violating the country's financial regulations.

After negotiations, Germany reached a budget agreement that maintained debt limitations until 2024. The government aims to save 17 billion euros ($18.51 billion) in its budget through cost reductions and the elimination of climate-harmful subsidies.

During a WEF panel discussion on the global economic outlook on Friday, Lindner stated, "As the minister responsible for addressing our debt and deficit problems, I felt isolated within the Cabinet, but we were ultimately successful in resolving these issues."

—  CNBC’s Ruxandra Iordache and Hannah Ward-Glenton contributed to this story.