Vehicles run on a bridge in Berlin, Germany, on Jan. 15, 2024. (Xinhua/Ren Pengfei)
More than half of German companies worry about energy and raw material prices, the shortage of skilled workers, domestic demand and labor costs, according to a survey.
BERLIN, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- Germany's Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) forecasted a decline in economic output of 0.5 percent for 2024 on Thursday, indicating the country's economy to slip deeper into recession.
Last year, Germany's gross domestic product fell by 0.3 percent. After the structural crisis in the early 2000s, this is only the second time in post-war history that economic output has fallen in two consecutive years, DIHK said.
"This is a clear alarm signal that Germany and Europe must take seriously," warned DIHK Managing Director Martin Wansleben. "The structural problems continue to weigh on the economy."
The business risks for companies "remain at a high level," DIHK said. More than half of German companies worry about energy and raw material prices, the shortage of skilled workers, domestic demand, and labor costs, according to a survey among more than 27,000 companies across various sectors.
A deliveryman rides on a road in downtown Berlin, Germany, on Jan. 15, 2024. (Xinhua/Ren Pengfei)
"It is worrying that almost three out of five companies now see the economic policy framework conditions as a business risk," Wansleben said.
The International Monetary Fund lowered its forecast for Europe's largest economy at the end of January but expects a slight growth of 0.5 percent. However, this would still put Germany among the worst performers in industrial countries.
"Germany is falling behind because there is no growth. The location is no longer competitive," the country's Minister of Finance Christian Lindner told newspaper Handelsblatt at the beginning of February.
The German government is due to present proposals for a growth agenda this month. In the middle of the year, a group of experts will also publish proposals for corporate tax reform, according to Lindner. ■
