Fearing uncertainty, German industry calls for fast snap election
By Christoph Steitz
FRANKFURT, Nov 7 (Reuters) -German industry, reeling from high costs and fierce Asian competition, urged Berlin on Thursday to hold snap elections as soon as possible after the ruling coalition broke up, warning Europe's top economy had no time to waste to get back on track.
The comments from the automotive, chemicals and energy sectors, which together form Germany's industrial backbone, highlight the need for fast reform as German companies are increasingly falling behind international competitors.
On Wednesday evening, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner after weeks of deadlock over budgets and other policy, dissolving the three-way "traffic light" coalition consisting of the Social Democrats (SPD), environmentalist Greens and neo-liberal Free Democrats (FDP).
The move has thrown Europe's economic powerhouse into a leadership vacuum at a time of industrial weakness.
Scholz said he was planning to hold a vote of confidence in January, paving the way for elections in March, a timeline key industry representatives said raised the risk of prolonged uncertainty when the sector needs regulatory support.
"The end of the traffic light coalition comes at a bad time," said Wolfgang Grosse Entrup, who heads Germany's pharma and chemicals lobby group VCI, representing companies such as BASF BASFn.DE, Covestro 1COV.DE and Evonik EVKn.DE.
"Especially in these challenging times, we need a solution-oriented federal government capable of taking action ... We cannot afford a months-long standstill and political deadlock."
The comments chimed with those of Hildegard Mueller, president of the powerful car lobby group VDA, which speaks on behalf of Germany's major automakers Volkswagen VOWG_p.DE, Porsche P911_p.DE, Mercedes-Benz MBGn.DE and BMW BMWG.DE.
Mueller, a former energy executive, said "new elections must be held as soon as possible. Germany cannot afford any further standstill in this situation".
The situation in the car industry is particularly dire, with all automakers suffering under growing global trade tensions, particularly between top markets U.S. and China, while Asian rivals are entering the European market with cheaper products.
German exports and industrial output fell more than expected in September, underlining the weakness of two of the pillars of Germany's economic model at the start of the fourth quarter.
Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume, currently locked in a major dispute with unions over potential pay cuts and plant closures, met with Scholz last week as part of an exchange with industry over how to support the troubled sector.
Scholz said on Wednesday he was planning a draft law on immediate support measures for the industrial sector before Christmas, raising the question how he intends to do that without a majority in parliament.
Reporting by Christoph Steitz; editing by Matthias Williams and Mark Heinrich
Aset Terkait
Berita Terbaru
Pengungkapan: Entitas XM Group menyediakan layanan khusus eksekusi dan akses ke Fasilitas Trading Online kami, yang memungkinkan Anda untuk melihat dan/atau menggunakan konten yang tersedia pada atau melalui situs, yang tidak untuk mengubah atau memperluas, serta tidak mengubah atau memperluas hal tersebut. Akses dan penggunaan ini selalu sesuai dengan: (i) Syarat dan Ketentuan; (ii) Peringatan Risiko; dan (iii) Pengungkapan Penuh. Oleh karena itu, konten disediakan hanya sebagai informasi umum. Anda juga harus ketahui bahwa konten Fasilitas Trading Online kami bukan sebagai ajakan atau tawaran untuk untuk melakukan transaksi apa pun di pasar finansial. Trading di pasar finansial mana pun melibatkan tingkat risiko yang signifikan pada modal Anda.
Semua materi yang diterbitkan di Fasilitas Trading Online kami hanya untuk tujuan edukasi/informasi dan tidak boleh mengandung nasihat dan rekomendasi finansial, pajak investasi atau trading, catatan harga trading kami, penawaran, permintaan, transaksi dalam instrumen finansial apa pun atau promo finansial untuk Anda yang tidak diminta.
Konten pihak ketiga apa pun, serta konten yang disiapkan oleh XM, seperti opini, berita, riset, analisis, harga, informasi lain atau link ke situs pihak ketiga yang tersedia "sebagaimana adanya", sebagai komentar pasar umum dan bukan menjadi nasihat investasi. Sejauh konten apa pun ditafsirkan sebagai penelitian investasi, Anda harus memperhatikan dan menerima bahwa konten tersebut tidak dimaksudkan dan belum disiapkan sesuai dengan persyaratan hukum yang dirancang untuk mempromosikan kemandirian riset investasi dan dengan demikian akan dianggap sebagai komunikasi pemasaran di bawah hukum dan peraturan yang relevan. Mohon dipastikan bahwa Anda telah membaca dan memahami Notifikasi pada Riset Investasi Non-Independen dan Peringatan Risiko kami mengenai informasi di atas, yang dapat diakses disini.
