Economy: German nation's redeeming feature (6,5)
I believe the answer is:
saving grace
'redeeming feature' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'economy german nation's' is the wordplay.
'economy' becomes 'saving' (synonyms).
'german' becomes 'g' (abbreviation).
'nation' becomes 'race' (I've seen this before).
'saving'+'g'+'race'='SAVING GRACE'
(Other definitions for saving grace that I've seen before include "a description of Miss Darling?" , "Redeeming quality" , "Compensatory good point" , "What stops one condemning" , "Redeeming feature" .)