Germany

Germany may hold election sooner than planned, Scholz says

Olaf Scholz could hold a vote of confidence in his leadership that would pave the way for new elections sooner than planned, he said Sunday night following pressure from across…

Read More Here

German retailers expect higher revenues this Christmas season, HDE forecasts

The German retail sector is expecting a slight increase in sales this Christmas season compared with the previous year, the German Retail Association (HDE) said this week. Revenue in November…

Read More Here

German coalition collapses: What comes next?

Germany's coalition collapsed on Wednesday as Chancellor Olaf Scholz sacked his finance minister and paved the way for a snap election, triggering political chaos in Europe's largest economy hours after…

Read More Here

German President: I am prepared to call new elections

Germany's President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Thursday he was prepared to dissolve parliament and clear the way for new elections following the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-way coalition, warning…

Read More Here

Germany faces snap election as Scholz’s coalition crumbles

Germany's ruling coalition collapsed on Wednesday as Chancellor Olaf Scholz sacked his finance minister and paved the way for a snap election, triggering political chaos in Europe's largest economy hours…

Read More Here

Germany’s cabinet approves draft law on voluntary military service

Germany's cabinet on Wednesday approved a draft law that would allow the army to gauge the readiness of the country's 18-year-olds to serve in the Bundeswehr as it looks to…

Read More Here

Germany arrests eight suspected members of right-wing group plotting revolt

German police have arrested eight suspected members of a right-wing militant group driven by racist ideology and conspiracy theories who had been training in warfare for the downfall of the…

Read More Here

Why is Germany’s coalition under strain and could it fall apart?

The parties in Germany's ruling coalition are under pressure to assert themselves after regional election defeats, dismal polling numbers and questions over whether they can form a joint response to…

Read More Here

Manhunt under way in Berlin after bag of explosives left at train station

German police are searching for a man who abandoned a bag of explosives at a Berlin train station and ran away after being stopped by federal officers, according to police.…

Read More Here

German economy unexpectedly grows, avoiding recession

Germany's gross domestic product unexpectedly increased in the third quarter, driven by government and household spending, skirting a recession amid fears that Europe's biggest economy would contract for a second…

Read More Here

German car industry transformation could cost 186,000 jobs by 2035, study finds

The transformation of the German car industry could lead to 186,000 jobs losses by 2035, of which roughly a quarter have already occurred, a study commissioned by the VDA auto…

Read More Here

Germany’s Scholz pledges to boost investment, attract more skilled workers

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised this week to boost investment, attract skilled workers and cut red tape to revive growth in Europe's biggest economy, which is on track to contract…

Read More Here

Britain and Germany to bolster defence cooperation with new agreement

Britain and Germany will sign a defence agreement on Wednesday, the first of its kind between Europe's two biggest spenders on defence, which includes a commitment to develop new deep-strike…

Read More Here

Germany identifies its first case of new mpox variant

The first case of the new mpox variant has been detected in Germany, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for public health said on Tuesday, adding that it viewed the risk…

Read More Here

German aviation sector calls for air travel taxes to be cut

Germany's aviation sector called for taxes on air travel to be slashed on Sunday. It comes after Ryanair and Eurowings recently scaled back services to and from Germany, citing high…

Read More Here

Germany arrests Libyan suspected of planning terror attack on Israeli embassy

Germany arrested a Libyan citizen suspected of plotting an attack against Israel’s embassy in Berlin, the federal prosecutor’s office said. The authorities identified the man only as Omar A. and…

Read More Here

Joe Biden visits Germany with US elections looming

US President Joe Biden has arrived in Germany ahead of talks with European leaders about support for Ukraine's war against Russia and the Middle East conflict. Air Force One landed…

Read More Here

Germany investigates fires caused by incendiary devices in parcels

Germany is investigating several fires caused by incendiary devices hidden inside parcels at a warehouse in Leipzig earlier this year, the country's prosecutor general said on Tuesday. German authorities warned…

Read More Here

Relaxation of Apostrophe Rules in German Sparks Debate Over English Influence

Recent changes to the rules governing apostrophe use in the German language have sparked a heated debate, irritating grammar purists and raising concerns about the creeping influence of English. The…

Read More Here

Germany’s social democrats name new general secretary

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) named a new top leader on Tuesday who will play a key role in the political campaign ahead of the country’s 2025…

Read More Here

Madeleine McCann suspect cleared of unrelated sex attacks

A suspect in the disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann was acquitted of unrelated sexual abuse charges by a court in the German city of Brunswick on Tuesday. Christian Brueckner…

Read More Here

Marburg Virus Scare at Hamburg Train Station

Two passengers suspected of carrying the lethal and highly contagious Marburg virus set off alarm at Hamburg’s main train station on Wednesday afternoon. Emergency crews in full protective gear boarded…

Read More Here

The Rise of Non-Alcoholic Beer in Germany

Statistics from the National Breweries Association show that there has been a steady decline in beer sales since 2015. The Oktoberfest beer festival is in full swing in Germany, but…

Read More Here

German Police to Bolster Politician Security Amid Growing Domestic and International Threats

The Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) announced plans to significantly increase the number of bodyguards assigned to protect Germany's top politicians in the coming years, citing growing dangers both domestically…

Read More Here

Germany increases ‘Deutschlandticket’ price to €58

German transport authorities will increase the price of the "Deutschlandticket" to €58 ($64.50) starting next year, they announced. From January 2025, the nationwide public transport ticket will cost €9 more…

Read More Here

Scholz’s SPD fends off far-right in election in Brandenburg, brings Scholz brief respite

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) staved off the far-right in a regional election on Sunday, likely providing him only a brief reprieve from growing criticism of his leadership…

Read More Here

German economy could shrink again in Q3, Bundesbank warns

The German economy could shrink again in the current quarter, given a deep industrial recession, subdued investment and abundant consumer caution, the Bundesbank said in a monthly economic report on…

Read More Here

Germany says Moldova could be next in line if Ukraine falls

Support for Ukraine guarantees the survival of neighbouring Moldova, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Tuesday at a conference to address concerns about broadening Russian interference in the region.…

Read More Here

German police investigate explosion in central Cologne

German police and prosecutors are investigating an explosion that occurred in central Cologne early Monday, a police spokesperson said, adding that there was no indication of a terrorist motive for…

Read More Here

Germany’s tighter border controls take effect, irking neighbours

Germany reintroduced temporary controls on its western and northern borders on Monday as part of efforts to combat irregular migration and cross-border crime, the interior ministry said. The restrictions are…

Read More Here

German navy makes rare transit of sensitive Taiwan Strait

Two German navy ships sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait on Friday in the first such transit in two decades, demonstrating Berlin's resolve to stand with Western allies at a…

Read More Here

Extreme weather warnings in Germany, Poland, Austria; Czech Republic expecting heaviest rain in over 20 years

Large parts of central Europe are bracing for potential flooding this weekend with heavy rainfall expected across parts of Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria. Up to 400…

Read More Here

Germany makes proposals to reduce number of asylum seekers

Germany's government presented a plan to implement more rigorously European rules on asylum that would see more people turned away at its borders, a day after it announced it would…

Read More Here

German inflation falls to the lowest level in more than three years

German inflation fell to its lowest level in more than three years in August, a second estimate confirmed on Tuesday, making it easier for the European Central Bank to cut…

Read More Here

Germany tightens border controls in immigration clampdown

Germany will temporarily institute tighter controls at all of its land borders to reduce irregular migration and to improve security, Berlin said Monday. German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser announced in…

Read More Here

Far-right’s victory in German state of Thuringia election puts migrants on edge

Syrian doctor Humam Razok felt relief when he arrived in Germany nine years ago after fleeing Damascus, where he had been jailed twice for his political beliefs. But the far-right…

Read More Here

Germany’s migration commissioner proposes Rwanda migrant deportation plan

Germany's migration commissioner proposed deporting to Rwanda migrants who arrive illegally to the European Union through its borders with Belarus, as Berlin contemplates measures to restrict refugees arriving in the…

Read More Here

German trade group sounds alarm as exporters stare down recession

German exporters are staring down a recession in foreign trade, with sentiment in the sector growing alarmingly dark, the BGA trade lobby group said on Wednesday. For 2024, the Federation…

Read More Here

Inflation down in six German states, pointing to national decline

Inflation fell in six important German states in August due to lower energy prices, preliminary data showed on Thursday, suggesting Germany's national inflation rate could decline noticeably this month. In…

Read More Here

German business sentiment falls in August, delaying recovery hopes

German business morale fell for a third consecutive month in August, a survey showed on Monday, pushing back recovery hopes for Europe's largest economy. The Ifo institute said its business…

Read More Here

Germany to donate 100,000 mpox vaccine doses to combat outbreak in Africa

Germany will donate 100,000 mpox vaccine doses from its military stocks to help contain the outbreak on the African continent in the short term as well as provide help to…

Read More Here

Germany’s Scholz promises more deportations after weekend mass stabbing

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to step up deportations on Monday during a visit to Solingen, where a deadly mass stabbing linked to Islamic State has emboldened the far-right opposition…

Read More Here

German stabbing suspect is 26-year-old Syrian man who admitted to the crime

The suspect in custody for a stabbing rampage in the western German city of Solingen that killed three people and injured eight is a 26-year-old Syrian man, authorities said early…

Read More Here

Germany’s Duden Dictionary adds 3,000 new words including OpenAI and Ghosting

Germany's Duden dictionary announced this week that it was introducing 3,000 new words into its latest edition, including TikTok and ChatGPT. Other tech terms like Hyperloop, OpenAI, and Ghosting were also…

Read More Here

UPDATED: NATO air base in Germany remains at high alert

The NATO air base in the German town of Geilenkirchen remained at high alert on Friday, a spokesperson said, after the security level was raised overnight "based on intelligence information…

Read More Here

German warships await orders on crossing Taiwan Strait

Two German warships await orders from Berlin, their commander said, to determine whether next month they will be the first German naval vessels in decades to pass through the Taiwan…

Read More Here

German military base sealed off due to suspected sabotage, security source says

A German military base next to Cologne airport has been sealed off and thousands of soldiers working there advised not to drink tap water as authorities investigate what may be…

Read More Here

German border controls set to stay until European asylum system takes effect

Border controls introduced by Germany could be extended beyond Dec. 15 if necessary as they have proved very successful in fighting smugglers and irregular migration, the German interior minister said.…

Read More Here

Beer sales in Germany down despite Euro 2024 hopes

Germany's beer sales fell by about 0.6%, or 25.8 million liters (6.8 million gallons), in the first half of 2024 compared to the previous year, the German Federal Statistical Office…

Read More Here

UPDATED: German hotel partially collapses, kills two, traps others

A hotel in Germany's picturesque Moselle wine valley collapsed overnight, killing two people, local police said on Wednesday, as rescuers worked urgently to pluck the three remaining trapped guests from…

Read More Here

German airport pauses flights after climate activists breach field

Germany's Leipzig/Halle airport temporarily halted flights early on Thursday after climate activists breached the airfield as part of a disruptive protest campaign that has lawmakers calling for stricter punishment and…

Read More Here

Germany on brink of recession as economy unexpectedly shrinks

The German economy unexpectedly contracted in the second quarter after skirting a recession at the beginning of the year and July's inflation rose, showing the continuing struggles of the euro…

Read More Here

Germany and Turkey cross swords over the doner kebab

Germany and Turkey have crossed swords over the doner kebab, with Berlin appealing Ankara’s attempt to have the beloved street food given the same protected EU status as Spain’s serrano…

Read More Here

EU sues Germany, Italy for alleged discrimination against mobile workers

The European Commission said on Thursday it had decided to refer Germany and Italy to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) over practices it said discriminated against mobile workers. In…

Read More Here

Around 140 flights cancelled at Frankfurt airport after climate activists block runway

Frankfurt airport, Germany's busiest, has resumed operations after suspending flights on Thursday morning when several climate activists blocked runways by gluing themselves to the tarmac. Planes were able to take…

Read More Here

Germany to hold general elections on Sept. 28 next year

Germany will hold the next general elections for its federal parliament on Sept. 28 next year, DPA newswire reported on Wednesday, saying this had been decided by the cabinet. The…

Read More Here

Russia says it may deploy nuclear missiles in response to US weapons in Germany

Russia does not rule out new deployments of nuclear missiles in response to the planned U.S. stationing of long-range conventional weapons in Germany, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted…

Read More Here