As was expected the US Federal Reserve Bank (Fed) today in the course of its rotational meeting lowered the US key interest rate by another 50 basis points to 3.00%. Thus, the current rate is as low as it was for the last time in the middle of the year 2005. This latest lowering was preceded by another dramatic lowering by 75 basis points following an extraordinary meeting last week (we reported on this). The Federal Reserve today did not rule out further reductions of the key interest rate.

In the year 2007 the domain market, i.e. the trade in internet addresses for homepages and websites grew at a breathtaking pace. This was confirmed by a yearly study carried out by the Sedo domain trading network. Thus, the trade volume increased by 60% last year. While in the year 2006 the money spent on domains amounted to 30.7 million Euros, this sum increased to more than 49 million in 2007. The market study in question is available for download from the internet. more…

In the year 2006 investment in innovation by German businesses increased significantly by 6%. In total, investment amounted to 115.5 billion Euros. For 2007 companies aimed at spending 5.5% more on innovation. For 2008, however, the increase planned is relatively moderate and amounts to about 2%. This was revealed by a study carried out by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), the Fraunhofer Institut für System- und Innovationsforschung (ISI) as well as the infa-Institute for applied social sciences. more…

In the year 2007 music downloads already accounted for about 15 percent of global music sales. In 2006, this percentage had been 11%. These findings were published in the “Digital Music Report 2008” by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). According to this report, the turnover in music downloads increased by 40% to 2.9 billion dollars. Music lovers can use the services of about 500 legal online shops worldwide which sold about 1.7 billion songs last year. more…

According to the WSI Institute which is part of the union-friendly Hans-Böckler foundation, 20 of the 27 EU member states have statutory minimum wages. 12 of these countries have increased the minimum wage since the beginning of 2008. more…

As was reported by the Federal Statistical Office, collective salaries of employees increased by 2.0% on average in the year 2007. This is the biggest increase since 2004. Collective hourly wages of workers even increased by 2.5% which is the biggest increase since 2003. For comparison, consumer prices increased by 2.2% on average in 2007. more…

For companies operating in Europe yesterday was a good day: the EU-wide SEPA system (Single Euro Payments Area) was launched. As a consequence, money transfers within Europe will not only be carried out as quickly as transfers within Germany but also become less expensive.

Another informations:
Cashless payments in Europe easier and cheaper

Many people believe that China is going to become the world´s next leading exporting country. The important question is when this is going to happen. As soon as 2008 Germany may lose its title as “export world champion” to China. In order to avoid this, the German export economy has to use its potential more effectively. Currently the success of Germany´s exports is still based on traditional industrial goods, but a lot of potential is not used. more…

In the course of their current consumption climate study, the Gesellschaft für Konsumforschung (GfK) found out that the feelings of German consumers are mixed at the beginning of this year. While the indicators with regard to economic prospects and propensity to buy were increasing, the indicator for income prospects was falling in comparison with the previous month. The overall indicator for consumption climate predicted for February is 4.5 points which is the same value as in January this year. more…

The unions and the German Left are currently calling for a minimum wage of 7.50 Euro an hour. A study carried out by the “Socio-economic Panel” at the Institute for Economic Research in Halle (IWH) showed that in the year 2006 almost 20% of employees in East Germany and about 8 percent in the West earned less than 7.50 Euro an hour. Nevertheless, the IWH experts warn against increased unemployment as a consequence of a minimum wage. more…