logo
Germany updates: Companies pledge €631 billion investment – DW – 07/21/2025

Germany updates: Companies pledge €631 billion investment – DW – 07/21/2025

DW4 days ago
The "Made for Germany" alliance has pledged investments totalling €631 billion over the next three years. Friedrich Merz met with top executives in Berlin in a bid to breathe life into the German economy. DW has more.
An alliance of top German companies pledged to invest at least €631 billion ($733 billion) in Germany over the next three years.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz met with executives from top German firms on Monday, hoping to rally fresh investment after two years of recession.
While the government has approved billions in tax relief and a €500-billion ($580 billion) fund for infrastructure and climate, Berlin says public money alone won't be enough.An alliance of German companies, numbering in the dozens, pledged to invest at least €631 billion ($733 billion) in Germany over the next three years.
"The investments by the initiative are a very powerful signal that we are now experiencing a shift in sentiment and consolidating it," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said.
"The message ... is very clear: Germany is back. It's worth investing in Germany again. We are not a location of the past, but a location of the present and above all the future," he added.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that large public investments could be boosted significantly private funding.
'We want to leverage this potential and thus trigger further growth effects," Merz said after meeting with representatives of the "Made for Germany" initiative at the Chancellery in Berlin.
The new government has launched a program to spur on investment and establish a €500 billion fund to splash on German infrastructure over the next 12 years. It has also pledged to cut bureaucratic red tape and speed up digitization.
The initiative is being led by executives from Germany's blue-chip companies, including lender Deutsche Bank and industrial group Siemens.
A summer interview with Alice Weidel, the leader of the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD), was severely disrupted by protesters on Sunday.
Members of her party have called for a repeat. Watch what happened here:
There has been a continued decline in the number of people employed in Germany's metal and electrical industry, according to the employers' association Gesamtmetall.
The association said that since the beginning of 2025, there had been around 60,000 job losses.
Basing its findings on a survey of companies, the association said that the number of employees in May was 2.5% lower than compared to the same period the year before.
While Germany's new government has taken some measures to relieve the situation, Gesamtmetall's managing director Oliver Zander higlighted a reduction in the electricity tax and the immediate investment program as outstanding issues.
"The speed at which the decline in employment in the metal and electrical industry continues shows, however, that the federal government has no time for breathers," Zander said.
The next heat wave has been forecast in Germany. How is a country known for its lack of air conditioning preparing?
Read the full story about Germany's preparations for heat waves.
Researchers say a far-right social media campaign — that painted a respected law professor as extremist — caused the suspension of the election of judges to Germany's highest court.
Read the full story on the controversial failure to elect a judge to Germany's top court.
Once famed for never being late, German trains almost never run on time anymore.
Deutsche Bahn has launched a refurbishment program that is likely to last at least a decade, and the costs and criticism are increasing.
Read the full story on increasing delays on Germany's rail network.
Germany's bond market calmed slightly on Monday after weeks of rising long-term interest rates. Investors are now waiting for new economic data from the Eurozone and a key decision from the European Central Bank (ECB).
A bond yield is the return investors get for lending money to the government by buying its bonds. When bond prices go up, yields go down — so falling yields often reflect expectations of slower growth or lower interest rates.
Economists believe the ECB will keep interest rates steady for now, but might cut them again as early as September.
Some analysts think this week's Eurozone business activity data could show little change, partly due to global trade worries and a strong euro. That could make German government bonds more attractive, pushing their prices up and yields down.
Senior representatives from around 50 countries are reconvening for another meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group.
The virtual session is set to begin with opening statements from German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, UK Defense Secretary John Healey, and Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
The Ukraine Defense Contact Group was first launched on April 26, 2022, at the US air base in Ramstein, Germany — leading to the term "Ramstein format."
US President Donald Trump's turnaround on military aid for Ukaine is likely to be the main topic of discussion, as NATO allies work to facilitate the weapons delivery.
Survivors of abuse within the Catholic Church are urging the Vatican to take action against Cologne Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, following years of controversy and a newly closed investigation.
The plaintiffs accuse Woelki of shielding perpetrators and retraumatizing victims through his handling of abuse cases in the archdiocese.
The complaint, submitted by all 12 members of the survivors' advisory board at the German Bishops' Conference, was drafted by physician and board member Katharina Siepmann.
"The affected often experience the cardinal's behavior as offensive," said Siepmann, who suffered three years of severe abuse as a child and has served on the board since early this year.
The body was established in 2022 to represent victims and advise the Church.
The group's formal complaint against Woelki refers to alleged breaches of church law, not state law. "We ultimately hope that officials in Rome — and the pope himself — will view the cardinal's behavior as unacceptable and intervene," Siepmann told German broadcaster WDR.
In May, Cologne prosecutors announced that Woelki would not face perjury charges in connection with his sworn statements about when he learned of abuse allegations in his archdiocese. The archbishop had been under investigation for more than two years.
Woelki, who remains a cardinal and Archbishop of Cologne, took part in the conclave that chose Pope Leo XIV.
The small town of Bohmte near the city of Osnabrück in the northwestern state of Lower Saxony was the scene of a spectacular accident that left two people seriously injured, including a seven-year-old boy.
For as yet unknown reasons, local police reported, a car appears to have come off the road at high speed before colliding with a parked vehicle and crashing through a hedge.
It then landed on a trampoline, hitting and injuring the child who was playing on it, and bounced into the attic of a barn.
Read the full story about the car that crashed into a trampoline in northern Germany.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is set to meet top executives from major German firms on Monday in a bid to restore investor confidence and revive the struggling economy.
Representatives from around 30 companies — including Siemens and Deutsche Bank — are expected to attend the talks in Berlin, according to sources cited by DPA. More than a dozen firms listed on the DAX, Germany's main stock index, are among those invited.
The meeting will focus on the "Made for Germany" initiative, launched by Siemens and Deutsche Bank, which aims to strengthen the country's investment climate. Participating firms are expected to outline upcoming projects and signal readiness to commit fresh capital.
After two years of recession and amid a bleak outlook for 2025, Merz is urging companies to ramp up domestic investment. His government, which took office in May, has approved multi-billion-euro tax relief packages to stimulate growth.
A government spokesperson last week pointed to the recently passed €500 billion (over $580 billion) infrastructure and climate fund, saying public investment will lead the way — but private sector participation is essential.
Once Europe's growth engine, the German economy has been hit hard by inflation, energy price shocks, and mounting global competition in the wake of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
from the DW newsroom, overlooking the Rhine River in Bonn — the former capital of West Germany.
You join us as Chancellor Friedrich Merz gets ready to woo some of Germany's biggest business bosses to help get the sluggish economy back on its feet.
Top names like Siemens and Deutsche Bank are expected talks in Berlin, along with more than a dozen other DAX-listed giants.
About 30 firms are set to join what's being billed as a major push to rebuild investor confidence in the country's economic future.
Merz is under pressure after two back-to-back years of recession and little sign that 2025 will turn things around.
Follow along for the latest on what Germany is talking about on Monday, July 21.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Which foreign nationals are not eligible for dual-citizenship in Germany?
Which foreign nationals are not eligible for dual-citizenship in Germany?

Local Germany

timean hour ago

  • Local Germany

Which foreign nationals are not eligible for dual-citizenship in Germany?

Widely celebrated by the foreign community , since the end of June 2024 Germany has opened up the possibility of dual-citizenship to individuals, regardless of their country of origin. In principle this means that anyone in Germany can become a dual-citizen as long as they meet certain qualifying criteria including German language and residency requirements. Foreign residents can gain a German passport whilst still keeping their home passport, and native born-born Germans can also gain a foreign country passport without forfeiting their German one. CHECKLIST: What do I need to apply for German citizenship? But a number of countries around the world aren't as liberal with their own citizenship rules. For people from these countries, unfortunately, the decision to naturalise as German would essentially mean having to renounce the citizenship that they've had since birth. For Indian citizens, for example, naturalising as German results in the automatic the loss of their Indian nationality. READ ALSO: 'Won't give up my passport' -Why Indians in Germany face hurdles to citizenship How Indians can protect their residency rights in India after becoming German In effect the same applies to citizens of other countries that don't recognise dual-citizenship such as China, Japan or the United Arab Emirates, for example. Until now, Ukraine recently was also among the countries that did not recognise dual-citizenship, but a reform to the country's citizenship law that took effect in June allows for dual-citizenship in specific cases, such as through birth, marriage, or for refugees and foreign volunteers. Advertisement Some countries that generally forbid dual-citizenship will make exceptions in specific cases. So if you'd like to seek dual-citizenship, it's worth checking with your embassy about the latest rules and possible exceptions. The following countries don't recognise dual citizenship: Countries that allow dual-citizenship are shown in green whereas those that limit dual-citizenship are red. Map: NuclearVacuum, Heitordp via Wikimedia Commons Andorra Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Belarus Botswana Bhutan China Cuba Congo Djibouti Ethiopia Haiti India Indonesia Iran Japan Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Macau Malaysia Marshall Islands Micronesia Monaco Mongolia Mozambique Myanmar Nepal North Korea Oman Papua New Guinea Qatar San Marino Saudi Arabia Singapore Slovakia Solomon Islands Swaziland Tajikistan Thailand Tonga Turkmenistan Uzbekistan United Arab Emirates Venezuela Vietnam Yemen Zimbabwe

German politician steps down over swastika on ballot – DW – 07/25/2025
German politician steps down over swastika on ballot – DW – 07/25/2025

DW

time2 hours ago

  • DW

German politician steps down over swastika on ballot – DW – 07/25/2025

The German state of Baden-Württemberg's deputy speaker stepped down after admitting he drew a swastika on a ballot beside an AfD lawmaker's name. Daniel Born said he had made a "serious mistake" during a vote. The deputy speaker of the parliament in the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg stepped down on Friday from his role after admitting he had drawn a swastika on a ballot paper next to the name of a far-right AfD lawmaker. Center-left Social Democrat (SPD) politician Daniel Born made the transgression during a vote involving two Alternative for Germany (AfD) lawmakers. In a statement, the Born said he had made a "serious mistake" and a "momentary lapse." The incident happened during Thursday's election of deputy members to the cross-border Upper Rhine Council, a consultative body. Two AfD lawmakers were on the ballot. A swastika was found on one of the ballots next to the name of AfD candidate Bernhard Eisenhut. The news that someone had drawn a swastika prompted widespread outrage. Initially, it was unclear who had drawn the Nazi symbol. State parliament president Muhterem Aras from the Green Party called the act a "criminal offense," and the parliament filed a criminal complaint with police on Thursday evening, initially against an unknown perpetrator. On Friday, Born said he would also step down from the SPD parliamentary group. However, Born stopped short of giving up his seat in parliament. "This was a serious error of judgment," he said. "I deeply regret this and accept the consequences." "I made a serious mistake and in a moment of rash emotion drew a swastika behind the name of an AfD candidate," Born wrote in an email to other parliamentary leaders, quoted by public broadcaster SWR. "I will never forgive myself for this failure." To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The swastika was the symbol of National Socialism and the party logo of the Nazi Party. Whether marking a swastika on a ballot during a secret vote constitutes a prosecutable crime remains to be determined by investigators and possibly the courts. Under Germany's Criminal Code, the use of unconstitutional symbols can be punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine. Born, 49, had been a member of parliament since 2016 and served as one of the legislature's vice presidents since 2021. He also acted as the SPD's spokesperson on religious affairs. Explaining his actions, Born cited deep concern over the far-right AfD and its disruptive conduct during Thursday's vote. "The speeches yesterday and the chaos caused by the AfD shook me deeply," he wrote. "I was in a state of emotional distress and completely failed." Parliament president Aras spoke of a scandal and on Friday called on the "person responsible" to resign from their parliamentary seat. "I have come to know Daniel Born as a passionate parliamentarian," said Aras. "Nevertheless, I expect him to resign his seat as well." The AfD's effort to have a representative on the council, a German-French-Swiss body, ultimately failed.

Germany risks missing opportunities in Africa – DW – 07/25/2025
Germany risks missing opportunities in Africa – DW – 07/25/2025

DW

time2 hours ago

  • DW

Germany risks missing opportunities in Africa – DW – 07/25/2025

Germany wants more economic engagement in Africa. However, while other countries have long been taking action, Berlin lacks strategy and speed. Geopolitically, there is much more at stake than just raw materials. China invests, India trades, and the Gulf States build. And what does Germany do? It often just watches. As the global competition for Africa's markets and raw materials escalates, German policy continues to lack strategic clarity. There is a lot at stake: Economic opportunities, geopolitical influence, and long-term partnerships. Something needs to change, German Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil said. At a G20 meeting of finance ministers in the South African city of Durban, he emphasized that partners in the global south share an interest in stable trade relations and respect for human rights. The task was to strengthen the economic relationship between Germany and South Africa — as well as that between Europe and Africa as a whole. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video A few days earlier, the Sub-Saharan Africa Initiative of German Business (SAFRI) called for a strategic reorientation. The so-called "Africa turnaround" was long overdue, it said. How realistic is this wish for renewal? And what is standing in the way? Trade data paints a sobering picture: German exports to the region have been stagnant for more than a decade. In 2014, they were valued at €13.3 billion ($15.6 billion), 10 years later, only €14.2 billion in German exports was traded. Accounting for inflation, the growth rate is virtually zero. Africa has no lack of economic dynamism. Countries such as Tanzania, Ivory Coast or Senegal have been recording robust growth rates for years. Demand for infrastructure, consumer goods and energy is rising across the continent, also fueled by rapid population growth. A big opportunity for German exporters. The main beneficiaries of these developments are, however, elsewhere: Companies from China, India, Turkey or the Gulf states clinch the biggest contracts. China has multiplied its exports and investments in Africa over the past 20 years. German firms, by comparison, have lost market share in many sectors. "A new race for Africa is taking place due to the relative decline of the EU and the US," according to political scientist Kai Koddenbrock from Bard College in Berlin said. A key example of this is the global competition for critical raw materials. Africa has a key role here. Whether cobalt, bauxite, lithium or rare earth: many of these strategically important minerals are already being extracted from the African continent or remain untapped. They are essential for making batteries, wind turbines and electronic motors — technologies central to green and digital transformation. As global demand climbs, especially China is securing access to these resources — often supported by long-tern infrastructure projects and a clear industrial-political strategy. US President Donald Trump has also begun a charm offensive. Germany, on the other hand, risks falling behind. German industry is now sounding the alarm: China accounts for more than 60% of rare earth mining and almost 90% of refining. The recent export restrictions from Bejing have suddenly laid bare Europe's dependence. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Has the game already been lost? Christoph Kannengiesser, CEO of the German-African Business Association, doesn't think so. He sees Germany as having a favorable starting position, due to its good reputation in Africa. "Our companies are already doing very special things," Kannengiesser told DW. Instead of mining raw materials, German interests are most focused on greenfield investments, local partnerships, and the development of sustainable structures. Many German companies are well known for implementing know-how in their African locations. Germany's policies come across as unpretentious, "especially at a time when African countries are increasingly focused on self-responsibility and industry development, which could be a decisive competitive advantage," the economist said. Kannengiesser pleads for the German government to pick up the pace. A coherent Africa strategy has so far been lacking. The latest plan was finalized shortly before the election late last year, far too late to show any effect. Such a strategy needs to guide action for years, he said. Germany needs to finally have an ambitious, differentiated plan, he concluded. "A lot has happened in the past 10 years," said Tom Halgasch, founder of Das Labor. GmbH which since 2011 has operated medical laboratories in Guinea, Ivory Coast and Togo. He observes however, that Germany's neighbors such as Belgium, the Netherlands or France, often have easier access. "They see economic engagement in Africa as part of their foreign policy. If, for example, a permit is not forthcoming, the embassy will take action." In addition, there are practical hurdles such as financing, visa issues, or a lack of double taxation agreements. The entrepreneur from Potsdam wishes for Germany to integrate foreign trade, diplomacy, and development cooperation more strongly in the future. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The biggest obstacle to more entrepreneurial engagement in Africa is the prevailing narrative, Christoph Kannengiesser said: The continent is perceived as too risky. That has direct consequences: Banks impose hefty interest rates or refuse credit if security or political stability is lacking. The government could intervene here via targeted instruments to secure and facilitate investments, especially for small and medium enterprises. Minister Plenipotentiary at the South African embassy in Berlin, Andries Oosthuizen, confirms that Germany continues to have a good reputation in Africa as a partner in technology and training. "We need investment in infrastructure, because ultimately German companies and investors are looking for stability and political security," Oosthuizen told DW. But economic engagement alone is not enough. Eventually, the fundamental question arises: How does Germany see its role in Africa? As an equal partner, an investor, or a securer of raw materials? Kai Koddenbrock from Bard College Berlin doubts promises of equal partnership. German interests revolve around stable supply chains and affordable access to resources. "I consider it unrealistic to think Germany is really interested in a strong African continent which can impose higher prices," he said. Investments are only fair if they are oriented toward the economic and political goals of African countries. That means local processing, developing countries' own industries and economic independence from European interests. "If it is really about a partnership of equals, Europe must also be prepared to accept bloc building in the Global South and to pay higher prices for processed or finished products from Africa," Koddenbrock said. "We must ask ourselves what sort of economy we want, in Germany and also globally." It is a defining moment. Germany still has the chance to become a trustworthy partner in Africa: economically, politically, and technologically. However, it will take more than announcements to achieve you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter, Berlin Briefing.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store