In spite of many burdens, the German economy grew more strongly than expected at the beginning of 2026 – partly because industry proved to be quite resilient. However, the labour market continued to deteriorate and the consequences of the war in Iran are clouding the outlook for the German economy in the second quarter.

Interest rate hikes will become increasingly likely if the inflation picture does not change fundamentally, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said in an interview with Germany’s “Handelsblatt” newspaper, pointing to the rising inflation rates in the euro area. Nagel used the interview to talk about current prices, the role of monetary policy and the digital euro.

This year’s “Banking supervision in dialogue” symposium centred around the competitiveness of Germany’s banking sector, the way forward for banking regulation, and the impact of technological and geopolitical trends. Hosted by Corinna Egerer and Philipp Otto, this industry event in Frankfurt am Main brought together around 800 representatives from the supervisory and banking communities.

Inflation this year is going to be noticeably higher than we were expecting it to be before the war in the Middle East broke out, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel told the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND) media network in an interview. How high inflation turns out to be mainly depended on how long the Strait of Hormuz remained blocked, he added. If the outlook doesn’t improve noticeably, I would expect us to raise interest rates in June, Nagel said, pointing to the geopolitical situation and rising energy prices.