There is (once again) a lot of talk about inflation. The reference point is one of the Germans’ favorite specters of terror: the hyperinflation. In an interview, Carl-Ludwig Holtfrerich explains how the fear of inflation was already politically instrumentalized by Reich Chancellor Brüning to enforce a harsh austerity course. Moreover, he says, the historical memory of the two crises of the Weimar Republic is clouded by mixing hyperinflation and the Great Depression.

Instead of inflation, the economic historian is more concerned about the Germany’s attitude towards public debt. Under the reference to a solid budget, there is not enough money for urgently needed public investments. This is counterproductive for wealth creation, especially in a world with declining private investment and a simultaneous increase in global savings. According to Holtfrerich, this development is also the reason for the historically low interest rate environment – and not the ECB’s zero interest rate policy.

You can read the full interview here.

The social market economy (Soziale Marktwirtschaft) has been the consensus concept of German economic policy for decades. Hardly any party or interest group can do without paying homage. But apparently the population sees it differently: according to various surveys, a majority of Germans have for some time been of the opinion that they do not benefit from the current economic system and that the current economic system needs a (fundamental) improvement .

The documentary Germanomics is about the search for the why. Through conversations with 19 scientists, the documentary captures the concept of the social market economy in concrete indicators and highlights the economic policy status quo in Germany in the super election year 2021. The film is also based on some projects of the Forum. Among them a study on inequality by Charlotte Bartels and Carsten Schröder (DIW) or an interview with Robert Gold on the economic roots of populism .

The Bundestag election campaign should be about more than short-haul flights and Christmas money, argues Thomas Fricke in Der Spiegel. Populism, climate change and the increasing gaps between winners and losers of globalization – the coming government must face up to big questions. The contributions at the eighth New Paradigm Workshop of the Forum New Economy last week give an impression of the really important matters of the future, so the tenor of the column.

First and foremost, this includes asking the question of how to effectively reduce the widening gap between rich and poor in Germany, or how to curb the loss of control felt by many people, which, according to populism researcher Robert Gold, is noticeably helping to fuel populist movements. How to truly combat the climate crisis is another question looming large. Tom Krebs of the University of Mannheim estimates that the German government would have to invest 100 billion euros over the next 10 years to enable an industry conversion to green hydrogen. And how is this supposed to be financed if the sensibility of the debt brake remains unquestioned? Joe Biden in the USA is currently demonstrating what a politics of tomorrow may look like. Can and should we achieve something similar here? All of this and more was discussed during the Forum New Economy conference – showing what should actually dominate the election debate.

You can read the full column here.

An overview of the contributions to the VIII New Paradigm Workshop can be found here.

“The country needs investment,” is the key message of Cerstin Gammelin and Alexander Hagelüken in their article for the Süddeutsche Zeitung, where they present key studies undertaken for the occasion of the Forum’s recent VIII New Paradigm Workshop. As figures from the Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK) suggest, the German government would have to invest around one percent of gross domestic product, or about 460 billion euros, to make up for past shortcomings and achieve a sustainable level of investment. A massive sum – how can this possibly be financed? According to Philippa Sigl-Glöckner of ‘Dezernat Zukunft’, a reform of government spending policy is urgently needed – moving away from a minimal debt ratio towards a state policy that strives for lower unemployment rates, better wages and a reduction in involuntary part-time work.

Also at the center of the debate: calls for increased spending on climate-friendly technologies such as renewable energy based hydrogen. According to a recent study by Tom Krebs of the University of Mannheim, instead of its currently planned 12 billion euros, the German government would have to invest up to 100 billion euros in a hydrogen climate strategy.

Not only in terms of future investments, but also in present terms, the government is challenged to act: Stefan Bach and Markus Grabka of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) argue for an expansion of collective wage agreements and a tax reform to specifically promote the incomes of those who have little. In particular, they say, the proportion of people in Germany who own their own home is far too low by European standards and needs to be elevated.

All studies cited in the article were undertaken on behalf of the Forum New Economy for its eighth New Paradigm Workshop on the Future of the German Model, taking place May 25-27.

The full article can be found here.

Joe Stiglitz, Gordon Brown, and many others join forces and urge US president Joe Biden to consider a temporary waiver of WTO´s intellectual property rules during the Covid-19 pandemic. The hope brought up by vaccine rollouts in wealthier countries is far from reaching low- and middle-income countries. Vaccine access in those countries urgently needs to be scaled up if the ultimate goal is that of saving as many lives as possible and reaching global herd immunity – an open sharing of know-how and technology is thus a moral imperative.

This the core message of the open call published on Project Syndicate and signed by many Nobel laureates and former heads of state and government: “If the past year has taught us anything, it is that threats to public health are global, and that strategic government investment, action, cooperation, and solidarity are vital. The market cannot adequately meet these challenges, and neither can narrow nationalism.”

You can read the full article here.