“But low interest rates and cheap ECB loans to banks have revived Germany’s long-dormant real-estate market, pushing average property prices up 5% in the past year, twice the rate of inflation. In small towns in Germany, prices aren’t rising much, but in certain desirable neighborhoods in Berlin and some other cities prices recently have shown double-digit growth from a year earlier. (more)
MESEBERG, Germany — Under Communism, the lakeside 18th-century Baroque palace in this village in the state of Brandenburg housed nine families upstairs and a branch of the East German general store known simply as Konsum downstairs. After a multimillion-dollar renovation several years ago, the castle now serves as Chancellor ’s version of Camp David, the American presidential retreat. (more)
With a new airport and a major five-star luxury hotel on the way, Berlin seems poised to get a new influx of visitors.
Berlin’s tourism marketing organization, visitBerlin, reported that last year, a total of 9.8 million people visited the German capital, to the tune of 22.4 million overnights. This corresponds to an increase of 9 percent in arrivals, and 7.5 percent in hotel nights, compared to the previous year. The city is now the third most popular travel destination in Europe—only behind London and Paris, and ahead of Rome. (more )
March 13 (Bloomberg) — German investor confidence jumped to a 21-month high in March after the European Central Bank flooded financial markets with cash and the sovereign debt crisis showed signs of abating.
The ZEW Center for European Economic Research in Mannheim said today its index of investor and analyst expectations, which aims to predict economic developments six months in advance, advanced to 22.3 from 5.4 in February. That’s the fourth straight increase and the highest reading since June 2010.(more)
• strategic partnership between airberlin and Etihad Airways
• airberlin becomes a full member of the global airline alliance oneworld®
• intensified activity at the Berlin, Dusseldorf und Vienna hubs
• new: the topbonus Platinum Card for frequent flyers
• two years of business points: 10,000 members
The main areas of focus for airberlin in 2012 are the strategic partnership with Etihad Airways, membership in the global airline alliance oneworld, intensified activity at its hubs both at its future home base at Berlin-Brandenburg (BER), but also in the expansion of the hubs in Dusseldorf and Vienna and the continuation of its comfort initiative. airberlin CEO Hartmut Mehdorn said: “In collaboration with our new partner Etihad Airways and as a member of the oneworld airline alliance, we are able to offer our customers a significantly improved and more attractive range of flights, as well as the opportunity to earn topbonus award and status miles on all flights with Etihad Airways and across the entire network of the oneworld Alliance (more)
The New York Times has a nice piece on the differences between the French and German economies. They’ve framed it by looking at two small towns, one just on each side of the common border.
It’s worth reading in full but I just wanted to emphasise this particular point:
French salaries have increased in real terms while German salaries have fallen, making French workers more expensive and thus less productive and competitive.
It is that and that alone which is the cause of the latest German economic miracle. As the rest of Europe flounders in economic chaos (admittedly, more chaotic the further south you go) it is this screwing down of wages which has led to the relative success. (more)
Germany’s property market should brace itself for a surge in international investment according to a new study. Global build-asset consultancy EC Harris’ “German Real Estate Market Trends: The Investor Perspective” report found that 70% of investors were planning to increase their level of investment this year. 59% of investors were also confident that Germany would remain Europe’s most stable economy over the next few years. The report, which compiled data from several focus interviews with national and international investors, also found a preference for projects in Frankfurt and Munich, with 65% of respondents showing a willingness to invest in the cities. (more)
The FINANCIAL — After a weak winter half-year, the German economy will already be back to a solid growth path in the spring. Although GDP growth in the final quarter of 2011 was negative with -0.2% for the first time in two years, already in the first quarter of 2012 GDP will return to – an initially slight – growth of 0.2%
According to KfW, there after GDP will enter a stronger upwards trend: KfW expects economic growth of 1.2% for the overall year 2012. In its first forecast for 2013 it expects an increase in growth of 1.9%.(more)
Germans are practically euphoric these days—compared to the dour mood that prevailed for nearly two decades following reunification, when real wages declined in a stagnating economy beset with what appeared to be permanently high unemployment.
While discontent smolders in other Eurozone countries, 88% of Germans are satisfied with their standard of living (Gallup). And 85%—a record since the beginning of the surveys—believe that they can get ahead if they work hard, up from 71% in 2007.
CBRE Germany reported this week that transaction volumes in “German residential property portfolios of more than 50 units increased by 44 per cent year-on-year to €6.12 billion (USD $8 billion) in 2011.”
“The number of traded residential units also increased by 27 per cent to around 92,000 units within 194 transactions, indicating that the market for large portfolios of over 1,000 units has regained momentum,” the global agency told OPP this week.
Where were the hotspots? “The demand for residential units in Berlin was particularly strong,” says CBRE Germany. “The federal capital traded around €2.3 billion and more than 32,300 residential units last year, which accounts for 37 per cent of the registered investment volumes and 37 per cent of all residential units in Germany. As a result of the large transaction volumes and high-end development projects in Berlin, the average price per sq m increased to €1,033.” (more)
