FRANKFURT, Germany, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The German economy is stagnating as the country's businesses are fighting headwinds, the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) said on Monday citing its survey of approximately 21,000 companies from all walks of industries.
"The outlook for the next 12 months remains overall bleak, especially since incoming orders are noticeably declining on the demand side. DIHK continues to expect zero growth this year," said Ilja Nothnagel, a member of the DIHK Executive Board responsible for economic analysis.
"There are still no signs of a broad-based upturn," he said.
Up to 65 percent of the survey respondents identified energy and raw material costs as the greatest business risk, although energy costs have retreated markedly from their record highs during the past few months.
The shortage of skilled workers and labor costs have also emerged as a big concern. More than 60 percent of the companies involved in the survey were concerned about the shortage.
"Overall, we must conclude that the German economy lacks momentum," Nothnagel said.
In December, the country's central bank (Bundesbank) significantly revised its economic growth forecast for 2023. According to the bank, the German economy has successfully avoided a severe downturn and is expected to contract by 0.5 percent in 2023. Germany's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.8 percent last year. ■
