Despite positive economic signals, companies in Germany are again increasingly planning to cut staff numbers. That resulted a survey by the Munich ifo Institute. Accordingly, the employment barometer fell from 93.4 points in January to 93.1 points. “Reluctance on the labor market is increasing again,” said the head of the Ifo surveys, Klaus Wohlrabe. “Many companies are planning to lay off more staff instead of creating new positions.”
According to the ifo Institute, almost everyone is planning Sectors of the export-oriented industry a Staff reductionsbut the automotive industry is particularly affected. “The pressure to adapt remains high there,” said the ifo Institute. This is due, among other things, to high tariffs in the USA and the growing competition from Chinese manufacturers.
Recently positive economic signals from the German economy
In the service sector, the employment barometer also fell into negative territory again in February. Retailers, for example, intend to get by with fewer employees. Nevertheless, individual sectors, including IT service providers as well as legal and tax consultancies, are still increasingly looking for staff. The barometer also improved slightly in the construction industry, and companies are planning to increase jobs there.
At the same time came There have also recently been economic signals from the German economy. The ifo business climate index, which is considered an important leading indicator, rose surprisingly significantly in February. In addition, the industry’s order backlog has recently grown for five months in a row. This means there are more orders than there have been since October 2022. According to the Bundesbank’s assessment, this is likely Gross domestic product therefore increased slightly in the first quarter. Stronger growth is expected for the spring, which is primarily attributed to government investments in armaments and infrastructure.
