The eurozone's third biggest economy grew 0.3% quarter on quarter, slightly more than expected thanks to a pickup in domestic demand.
On an overcast day at the end of October, I clambered into Murphy's battered Mitsubishi pickup for a tour of the Forest of Bowland where Hope and Sky had vanished.
Chris Cabrera surveyed the scene from his white pickup truck.
A pickup in the eurozone will soothe fears that the region is stuck in a rut of consistently sluggish growth.
The size of the drop surprised the City, which had expected only a 0.3% decline following recent signs of a pickup in the housing market and strong growth in high street spending.
We've debated whether "pickup artist" Julien Blanc, who recommends seducing women with a "choke opener", should have been refused a visa to enter Britain.
Instead, he brought his pickup truck and tool kit to support fellow riders.
There has been scant evidence of the usual pickup in productivity that normally accompanies an economic recovery, and after almost six years the argument that an improvement is imminent has worn thin.
John, who had a "Sharia-free zone" bumper sticker on his pickup truck, described the attendees as a "very constitutionalist, very Christian crowd".
Toyota Hilux pickup trucks are invariably used, and as we drive along the coast, Naeem points out one after another: "smuggling clothes", "gas".
Related: Janet Yellen says interest rate hike 'will be appropriate' later this year "There are at least some encouraging signs of a pickup so far this year," Yellen said at the end of May.
