Germany Introduction

Throughout the world Germany has a reputation for its wealthy and prosperous economy. In this section we want to provide you with a comprehensive overview of relevant numbers and facts to back this reputation.

General overview

Germany is a Western European country composed of more than 350 thousand square kilometers and a population close to the 83 million mark (2018) that is growing at a 0.22% rate. The official language spoken in this country is German. Next to the German capital city Berlin other major cities include Munich, Hamburg, Cologne and Frankfurt. An excellent infrastructure is established far beyond these major cities to the smallest corner in the rural areas of this country.

Economy

Economic performance

The German economy is the fourth largest in the world, following only the United States, China and Japan. The country’s GDP is increasing on a steady basis; in the recent year (2018) the nominal GDP amounted to 4.029 trillion USD. Generally the healthy German economy is best described as steady and flourishing.

Unemployment rate

The German economy’s excellent condition also reflects in the country’s unemployment rate that is at a record low. At a current rate of 3.3% (November 2018) Germany records the second lowest unemployment rate (after the Czech Republic) within the European Union.

Foreign trade

For 2018 Germany reported exports to the value of 116.3 billion Euro while importing in the same time frame goods and services to the value of 95.7 billion Euros which is a 3.6% increase compared to the previous year.

In general the German economy is relatively open and we import goods and services from a quite broad range of categories. Among the most important categories for Germany’s imports are motor vehicles and their parts, data processing equipment, electronic and optical products, machines, metals, chemical products, electronic equipment, pharmaceutical products, food- and feedstuff, and many more…

Politics

Domestic policy

Germany is a federal, parliamentary democracy, currently governed by a so-called grand coalation between the two major parties CDU and SPD, the Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats. Germany’s current chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) has been in office since 2005.

European Union

Germany’s role in the European Union is naturally significant as it is one of the six founding members, one of the leading economies as well as one of the largest countries within the EU, both in terms of population and surface area.