The German economy contracted by 0.1 per cent in the second quarter from the first quarter, according to data from the Federal Statistics Office.
After gross domestic product contracted by 0.2 per cent in the first quarter, the figures mark the second time in two years that Germany has entered recession - commonly defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction.
The German figures bode ill for euro zone preliminary second-quarter GDP data due to be released at 11 a.m. Irish time after data last week showed Italy was also in recession in the second quarter.
Germany and Italy together account for around half of the euro zone economy. Economists polled by Reuters forecast the 12-nation region failed to grow at all in the second quarter, after growing a mere 0.1 per cent in the first quarter.
The Statistics Office said the contraction was due to a decline in exports which could not be offset by slightly stronger domestic consumption.
Analysts said the strong euro was slowing export growth, traditionally the mainstay of the German economy, leaving the country dependent on private consumption to underpin a recovery. The euro has gained over 7 per cent against the dollar this year, hammering exports by making German goods more expensive abroad.
Year-on-year, second-quarter GDP shrank 0.6 per cent, the Office said. Adjusted for the number of working days, the economy shrank by 0.2 per cent.
Economists said they expected the German economy to pick up slightly in the third and fourth quarters, offsetting the negative first half.