Die Ersparnisbildung (netto) im Euroraum belief sich im Jahr 2024 auf 838 Mrd. € (dies entspricht einem Anteil von 6,9 % des verfügbaren Nettoeinkommens im Euroraum) und veränderte sich damit kaum gegenüber den vier Quartalen bis zum dritten Quartal 2024. 
 

In the first quarter of 2025, firms again considered the high level of regulation and government rules to be their greatest challenge in the short term. In March, this was considered to be the greatest challenge by 69 % of firms, followed by the poor availability of workers, which was considered to be a serious problem by 55 % of firms. In the first quarter of 2025, between 48 % and 52 % of firms believed high energy prices would be problematic for them going forward. Around 38 % of firms said that competitive pressure would pose a challenge over the next six months. By contrast, around 32 % expected that this would not be a problem for them.

“Economic output in Germany is likely to have increased slightly in the first quarter of 2025, but could suffer a setback in the second quarter,” the Bundesbank writes in its latest Monthly Report. Construction and industrial output, for instance, were up recently. Retail sales also continued to grow in January and February. However, according to the Bundesbank’s economists, the outlook for the second quarter is gloomy, not least given the US administration’s tariff policy.

“This is one of the most important Spring Meetings,” Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said at a press breakfast with Germany’s acting Federal Finance Minister Jörg Kukies on the occasion of the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. “We know what we’ve got, and what we’ve had, with the IMF and the World Bank. Multilateralism is a core element of the global economic order.”