Germany in Very Deep Do-Do; Facing Longest Recession Ever – Handelsblatt

The institute predicts a 0.1% decline in 2025, following contractions of 0.3% in 2023 and 0.2% in 2024.

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This economic slump surpasses the two-year downturn of the early 2000s, and reflects the compounded effects of an energy crisis, persistent inflation, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The German economy is in the midst of its greatest crisis in post-war history,” HRI chief economist Bert Rurup said.

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Demographic challenges, such influx of impoverished, unskilled people from all over, and an aging, shrinking, native population, are adding to the strain.

The HRI estimates Germany’s growth potential, if all goes back to normal, highly unlikely, has fallen to just 0.5% annually.

Official data from the Federal Statistical Office, expected on January 15, is likely to confirm the contraction in 2024.

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While the HRI forecasts modest recovery in 2026, growth is expected to reach just 0.9%, far below pre-crisis levels.

The German central bank has also adjusted its 2025 growth outlook, revising it down from 1.1% to 0.2% in December.

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Germany shifted to its hugely expensive ENERGYWENDE, which led to dysfunctional, weather-dependent, occasionally available wind and solar,  has hamstrung the German economy.

In addition, Germany closed down its already paid-for, highly-efficient nuclear plants; the stupidity of that is off the charts.

In addition Germany shifted from low-cost Russian pipeline gas to much more expensive liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US.

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All that has driven up energy costs, severely affecting manufacturers and small businesses.

Rising costs have led to shutdowns and bankruptcies across industries, including major players like Volkswagen.

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Before the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, Germany relied on Russian gas for over 50% of its energy needs.

Following EU sanctions on Moscow, Russian pipeline gas deliveries were drastically reduced, or cut off entirely, by totally naiveEU bureaucrats.

In September 2022, the Nord Stream pipelines, which transported Russian gas to Germany, were destroyed by explosions. 

On January 1, 2025, Ukraine forced Russia to stop pipeline transit gas through Ukraine.

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The loss of affordable Russian energy and rising costs have made economic growth extremely difficult; the headwinds are too large to over come.

All of that was highly predictable by sane people.

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Merkel recently criticized the decision to abandon Russian gas, but she is the main cause of Germany's present malaise, because:

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1) she and Sarkosy and Poroshenko and Zelensky, etc., had no intention of implementing the Minsk Agreements, which were an extremely good deal for Ukraine, which is now ruined,

2) she shut down the nuclear plants, and

3) she was a big promoter of the super-expensive, disastrous ENERGIEWENDE.

4) she was a big promoter of "refugees" from all over, which set up cultural clashes, crazy people driving trucks into shoppers during Christmas time, and social/economic/political unrest to the point of rendering Germany ungovernable and dysfunctional.

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In an interview with France 2 TV in December, she called the past arrangement a “win-win situation,” saying it provided Germany with low-cost energy, which is a bold-faced lie, because Germany has the highest electric rates in Europe.

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She thinks we suffer of amnesia

https://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/merkel-ruined-germany-...

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The economic crisis has become a pressing issue for Germans.

A poll in December conducted by public broadcaster ARD revealed that the economy is the top concern for voters.

The early general election scheduled for February 23, 2025 follows the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s center-left coalition in November 2024.

AfD likely will become the largest party in Germany, after the elections in February 23, 2025.

Let us hope it gets over 50% so it can govern without the other parties.