Economic output shrank at the end of 2023. Europe's largest economy is entering the new year without any tailwind.
There was a ray of hope in public finances. Last year the tax authorities once again spent more money than they took in. However, the federal, state, local and social insurance deficits fell by 9.5 billion euros to a good 87.4 billion euros compared to the previous year, partly because a large part of the expenditure to combat the pandemic was omitted.