German companies under pressure from energy crisis

DIHK announced the results of the survey on the "business environment" with the participation of 24 thousand companies.

About 82% of surveyed companies see energy and raw material prices as risks for their business. DIHK stated that this rate is the highest since 1985, when records began to be kept.

52% of German companies think their business will deteriorate in the next 12 months. The rate of those who expect improvement in their business remained at 8%.

The survey, which revealed that almost 20% of German companies operating in energy-intensive sectors are reducing their production due to the energy crisis, also showed that one out of every 12 companies (8%) plans to shift their production due to rising costs, compared to 17% in the automotive sector.

"We expect a decrease of about 3% in economic production in 2023"

DIHK's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Martin Wansleben, said, "The proportion of German companies that were optimistic during the Covid-19 outbreak and the 2008 financial crisis was more than 10%. Companies are worried that the worst is yet to come. Companies, especially industry, are high in energy prices. They are affected by the increase and uncertainty in energy supply.”

Noting that they expect a 1.2% increase in Germany's GDP this year, Wansleben emphasized that the removal of Kovid-19 restrictions in the first half of 2022 had an impact on this positive growth.

He stated that "However, this growth has been suppressed for months by the energy crisis, inflation and the troubled global economy. The German economy is facing not only a tough winter, but also a tough year. Based on special reports and assessments from companies, about approx. We expect a 3% decline." 

The German government expects GDP to rise 1.4% this year and fall 0.4% next year.