In April this year the number of gainfully employed people in Germany continued falling. According to provisional calculations by the Federal Statistical Office, the number of gainfully employed people in Germany amounted to 39.96 million in April which is a drop by 130,000 or 0.3% as compared to April in 2008. The economic crisis is more and more affecting the labour market. The full effects of the crisis are currently still partially compensated for by short-work. As compared to March 2009, the number of gainfully employed people increased by 68,000 (+0.2 %) in April. more…

In May this year, for the first time since the German reunification, consumer prices remained unchanged by annual comparison (0.0 % as compared to May 2008). On April this year consumer prices fell by 0.1%. According to the Federal Statistical Office, consumer prices are currently stabilizing after sharp drops over the past months. more…

Prices for imported goods were down by on average 8.6% in April this year as compared to April last year. The last such drop was registered in March 1987. In March and February 2009 the respective annual changes had been -7.1 % and -6.4 %. In comparison with March this year the import price index fell by 0.8 %. The export price index in April was down by 2.0% as compared to April last year and by 0.1% as compared to March 2009. more…

In March 2009 the German construction industry suffered a drop in incoming orders amounting to 9.1% (in real terms) as compared to the respective month last year. The order volume in structural engineering fell by 13.3 % and by 4.6% in civil engineering. These reductions in March were clearly smaller than those in February (-17.5 %) and January (-24.4 %). Over the first quarter 2009 the average drop in incoming orders to the German construction industry amounted to 16.4% as compared to the respective quarter in the year 2008. more…

The current deep crisis inevitably changes the ideas people have about the way the economy should ideally function. Expectations people have with regard to businesses, institutions and brands are changing significantly and increasingly comprise social and political claims. This was revealed in the course of a study by BBDO Consulting which is an international strategy consulting firm. In the course of a recent study 1000 German citizens over 16 years of age were interviewed on their values and their expectations of the ideal business. more…

At the past weekend collective bargaining between employers (ZDB) and unions (IG Bau) in the German construction industry came to an end which was reached through conciliation. According to the agreement reached, wages and salaries of the about 700,000 employees in the German construction industry are to be raised by 2.3% as of June 1st 2009 and by another 2.3% from April 1st in 2010. For May 2009 employees will receive a single additional payment of 60 Euros. The new collective wage agreement will be valid for 24 months. more…

Data of a business are as important as its financial assets. If these fall in the hands of competitors, the existence of the company is often endangered. There is always a risk involved, if backup data carriers or USB sticks fall into the wrong hands. Therefore, confidential data have to be particularly protected, e.g. by means of enciphering. How can this be done? Where can enciphering of sensitive data be carried out? more…

Not only do Germans love shopping, but they also make more and more use of the internet for shopping instead of going to traditional shops. 42 % of Germans used the internet for shopping last year with the EU average being 24 %. Product ranges offered on the internet are broader than those of any department store and internet shops are open around the clock. Furthermore, it is possible to compare prices easily. In addition there are consumer-friendly laws in Germany with regard to returning goods ordered online. more…

The economic crisis is more and more affecting the labour market. According to provisional figures provided by the Federal Statistical Office, in the first quarter 2009 the number of gainfully employed people fell to 39.9 million for the first time in nine months. Only in comparison with the first quarter in 2008 there was slight increase by 48,000 people (+0.1 %). However, without many employees working short-time in Germany the employment figure would have decreased even further. more…

The IAB institute registered a drop in the number of job vacancies to 870,000 in the first quarter 2009. This is 221,000 less than in the fourth quarter 2008 and 273,000 vacancies less than one year ago. This drop in the first quarter 2009 almost exclusively affected the west of Germany due to this region’s greater dependence on exports. more…