Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann has reaffirmed his critical stance towards current monetary policy, saying in Berlin that it is still appropriate for monetary policy to be in accommodative mode given the subdued price pressures, but it is nonetheless legitimate to ask when the ECB Governing Council should set its sights on normalising monetary policy.

Bundesbank President Weidmann has again pointed out the risks associated with government bond purchases in the Eurosystem. In a speech to students and lecturers, he argued that they blurred the boundary between monetary and fiscal policy. The zero interest rate environment provided perceptible relief for highly indebted states, he explained, warning that “[y]ou don’t need to be a "nattering nabob of negativism" to fear that there may be political pressure on the ECB’s Governing Board to postpone any normalisation of monetary policy out of concern for public finances.” .

The Bundesbank celebrated the 30th anniversary of its Representative Office in the Japanese capital on 22 May. At a reception with 150 invited guests, Bundesbank Executive Board member Andreas Dombret and the Governor of the Bank of Japan, Haruhiko Kuroda, acknowledged the value of the close and personal cooperation.

Robust economic growth in Germany is set to continue, the Bundesbank’s experts write in the current Monthly Report, as indicated by the favourable order situation in industry and construction as well as the positive sentiment in the German economy and among households.

Growing numbers of consumers in Germany are using electronic payment methods, says Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann.

At a celebratory event to mark the 60th anniversary of the Bundesbank, Executive Board member Andreas Dombret highlighted the German central bank's regional ties. Malu Dreyer, the Prime Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate, was among the guests at the Bundesbank's Regional Office in Mainz.

The Bundesbank has launched its special exhibition "Guardian of the currency – 60 years of the Bundesbank in the eyes of the media". At the opening ceremony, Otmar Issing, formerly chief economist at the Bundesbank and the European Central Bank, discussed the role and tasks of central bank communications with representatives from the German media.

According to figures from the Federal Statistical Office, in the first quarter of 2017 the German economy grew by 0.6% compared to the fourth quarter of 2016. Based on provisional calculations, positive contributions came from both domestic and foreign demand.

The European Central Bank has expanded the options available for visually presenting statistical data. On its “Our statistics” website, users can now deploy a new tool to show statistics in the form of network graphs, accompanied by explanatory texts.

The working-age population in Germany is becoming increasingly old and will diminish in size in future. According to a Bundesbank projection, this could considerably dampen growth prospects for the German economy in the medium to long term. While the current high level of immigration is mitigating this trend, it is unable to stop it.