In 2020, the Bundesbank registered approximately 58,800 counterfeit euro banknotes with a nominal value of €2.9 million in German payments. The number of counterfeits thus rose by 6.5% on the year, while the nominal value of the banknotes seized fell by 14.3%.

The financial assets of households in Germany came to €6,738 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2020. This was €108 billion (or 1.6%) higher than in the previous quarter. In the third quarter of 2020, households mainly built up cash and deposits totalling €41 billion, followed by claims on insurance corporations (€19 billion) and shares (€11 billion).

Many citizens have adjusted their payment behaviour during the coronavirus pandemic. “According to a representative Bundesbank survey in 2020, the importance of cashless payment methods, especially cards, in everyday expenditures has been growing considerably,” said Burkhard Balz, the member of the Bundesbank Executive Board responsible for cashless payments.

Survey results from December 2020 indicate that individuals are expecting inflation to come to 3.1% on average over the next 12 months, which is the highest rate measured in 2020. Inflation expectations had previously dropped from 2.8% in June to 2.5% in November.

Germany’s current account recorded a surplus of €21.3 billion in November 2020, down €1.6 billion from the previous month’s level. This was primarily attributable to a decrease in the goods account surplus. By contrast, the surplus in invisible current transactions, which comprise services as well as primary and secondary income, expanded only slightly.

The Deutsche Bundesbank calculates the basic rate of interest in pursuant to statutory requirements and publishes its current level in the Federal Gazette. 

Demand for programmable payments is rising in the German economy. The working group on “Programmable money”, initiated by the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Deutsche Bundesbank, arrived at this verdict. The group, comprising experts from 19 enterprises in the real economy and financial sector, analysed possible payment solutions in new, innovative business cases.

Germany’s current account recorded a surplus of €22.5 billion in October 2020, down €2.7 billion from the previous month’s level.