The wholesale business is looking back onto a successful first half of the year. According to Mr Anton Börner, chairman of the Association of German Whole and Foreign Trade (BGA), the current boom has led to significant growth in this economic sector. The optimistic announcement came on the occasion of the publication of turnover figures of wholesale trade by the Federal Statistical Office in Berlin. According to the BGA, the main incentives came from export and import as well as from investment in machinery and equipment. more…

After the debate on Mr. Franz Müntefering´s comparison of hedge funds to voracious locusts has cooled off, one today wonders whether private equity (⇒ Wikipedia) may not rather become Germany’s driving force for efficiency and competitiveness. On the occasion of the 2nd private equity conference organized by the Financial Times Deutschland on September 6th in Frankfurt/Königsstein managers from the private equity scene will talk about their experiences, forecasts as well as their individual risks and opportunities. more…

According to a survey by the Association of Consumer Research (GfK), which was commissioned by the TextilWirtschaft professional journal, 70 percent of all German consumers are in favour of a general deregulation of statutory shop closing times. The survey also showed a growing dissatisfaction with current shop closing hours. Back in the year 2000 about 72 percent of costumers had still been satisfied with closing times, but currently this is true for only half that number which, according to the study, is also a consequence of special closing times during the Football World Cup. more…