Prague - The Czech economy shrunk in the first quarter of 2009 by 3.4 per cent year-on-year, the deepest annual drop in the country's history, owing to falling foreign demand, according to government data released Tuesday.

The country's gross domestic product (GDP) also fell by 3.4 per cent in the first three months of 2009 compared to the previous quarter, the Czech Statistical Office said.

While the contraction was driven by dropping foreign demand, domestic consumer spending was on the rise in the first quarter, the statisticians said.

Annual inflation, meanwhile, further slowed to 1.3 per cent in May, compared to 1.8 per cent in April, the statistics office said.

The Czech Republic emerged unscathed from the global financial meltdown but the export-driven economy has been hurt as its foreign markets, chiefly the eurozone, have been cutting orders amid the global economic crisis.

According to a June 3 Eurostat estimate, GDP in the 16 countries using the euro fell by 4.8 per cent from January to March.

The Czech economy's first-quarter fall was softer than elsewhere in Central and Eastern Europe.

The Estonian economy contracted by 15.1 per cent, the Hungarian economy by 6.7 per cent and the Slovak economy by 5.6 per cent in the same period, local statisticians said. (dpa)