Oil, euro, credit crunch may hurt German growth-Glos

BERLIN, May 27 (Reuters) - Record oil prices, the strong euro and financial market turbulence could hurt the German economy in coming months, Economy Minister Michael Glos said on Tuesday.

"Although the start to the year was extraordinarily good, partly due to the favourable weather conditions, present risks such as financial market turbulence, the rise in the oil price and the weakening of the U.S. dollar should not be underestimated under any circumstances," Glos said.

The braking effect on growth from those risks could be seen as the year progresses, he added in a statement.

The Federal Statistics Office confirmed on Tuesday that the German economy expanded by 1.5 percent quarter-on-quarter in the January-March period, in line with a preliminary estimate published in mid-May and the strongest rate since 1996. Glos said stronger domestic demand was helping to shield Germany from uncertainty in the international environment. (Reporting by Iain Rogers)