According to Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann, the German economy has probably moved past the trough of the coronavirus crisis.

The Bundesbank celebrated its 60th anniversary by hosting an open day in Frankfurt am Main on 1 and 2 July. Around 28,000 visitors eager to gather their own impressions of the Bundesbank flocked to the bank’s Central Office and its Regional Office in Hesse to experience a rich variety of informative and entertaining attractions.

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann says that non-standard monetary policy measures can have a variety of effects on income and wealth distribution. “Much like conventional interest rate policy, the non-standard measures are more likely to have reduced income inequality,” he said in a speech in Hamburg.

The upswing in the global economy is gaining momentum, believes Bundesbank Executive Board member Andreas Dombret. In the run-up to the Annual Meeting of the International Monetary Fund, he argued for taking advantage of favourable economic conditions to increase the growth potential of national economies through structural reforms.

Alexandre Lamfalussy, one of the founding fathers of the euro, passed away on 9 May at the age of 86. Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann praised him as one of the important pioneers of European monetary union.

On 11 January 2022 the Bundesbank bid farewell to its current President, Jens Weidmann, and welcomed Joachim Nagel as the tenth President of the Bundesbank. The ceremony marking the change of office was streamed live on the Bundesbank’s website and on YouTube. Alongside Mr Nagel and his predecessor Weidmann, speakers included Bundesbank Vice President Claudia Buch, ECB President Christine Lagarde and Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner. 

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann has come out in favour of swiftly ending net asset purchases in the euro area. In a speech held at the Centre for European Economic Research, Mr Weidmann focused, in particular, on the importance of communication in the context of monetary policy decisions. He also said that the latest economic downturn was no reason to delay the necessary normalisation process.

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann says the government acted swiftly and comprehensively in the coronavirus crisis. But finding a way out of crisis mode will be equally important. The crisis is forcing economic and fiscal policymakers to perform a tricky balancing act – supporting the economy in the short term, but not obstructing the necessary change or losing sight of the longer-term challenges.

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann and Executive Board member Sabine Mauderer say that central banks do have a part to play in forging a more sustainable financial system. But speaking at a conference in Frankfurt am Main, they both warned against overburdening monetary policymakers with climate policy objectives.

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann has conflicting views on the United States’ decision to initially exempt the European Union from the recently enacted tariffs on steel and aluminium. Though it avoided an open trade conflict, the agreement reached between the United States and the EU was no victory for international free trade, Mr Weidmann explained during a speech in Vienna.