Graph with pen

Weekly activity index for the German economy

The weekly activity index (WAI) is an index designed to measure real economic activity in Germany in a timely manner. The index is based on daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly indicators for the German economy.

Weekly activity index and GDP growth

Update as of 18 August 2025

  • For the week of 11 August – 17 August (week 33) the WAI stands at − 0.2. The decrease was thus again smaller compared to the preceding week (previously − 0.3).
  • The index value indicates that trend-adjusted economic activity (measured by the WAI) in the 13 weeks up to 17 August was 0.2 % below activity in the preceding 13 weeks.
  • The WAI-implied GDP growth rate for the last 13 weeks up to 17 August compared with the preceding 13 weeks is − 0.1 %.

The next update is scheduled for 15 August 2025.

Note

The WAI is still a work in progress; it is constantly undergoing revision and, when necessary, adjusted (see Methodology). The WAI is not an official forecast of the Deutsche Bundesbankor the Eurosystem.

Citation

Please cite this report as follows:
Eraslan, S. and T. Götz (2020), An unconventional weekly economic activity index for Germany, Deutsche Bundesbank Technical Paper, 02/2020. Data retrieved from www.bundesbank.de/wai.