According to the German Industry and Trade Association (DIHK), the German economy is expected to experience a significant contraction this year. The organization predicts a 0.5% decline in the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), as reported by the association’s chief executive, Helena Melnikov, in an interview with the German newspaper Handelsblatt. Melnikov expressed a sense of pessimism, stating, “I’ve never seen such bad numbers and such a bad mood.” The forecast is based on a survey of the association’s 23,000 member companies.
Melnikov has called for comprehensive economic reforms from the next federal government, saying, “We’re racing to the last exit now.” As a lawyer who has been the DIHK’s chief executive since the start of the year, she does not only hold the Union and Free Democratic Party (FDP) responsible for an economic turnaround, but also the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Greens, citing the “Agenda 2010” as an example of a policy initiative that received support from both parties.