Ifo warns against underestimating the Delta mutant: "Then we would have a hard autumn ahead of us"

Is the German economy recovering after the pandemic?

The economic research institute Ifo expresses concerns about a corona mutant.

Munich - "The Delta variant is a serious risk for the German economy": The economic research institute Ifo has warned of a setback in the economic recovery if the corona infection numbers * rise again because of the mutation *.

Ifo President Clemens Fuest told the news portal

in an interview published on Sunday.

All would not be lost if the incidences * rose again as a result of the variant, added Fuest.

However, the recovery would be delayed.

In particular, the areas that would have already suffered severely from the pandemic * would be affected again, i.e. the travel industry, restaurants or retail.

"Then we would have a hard autumn ahead of us."

According to figures from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) * for the first week of June, the proportion of the Delta variant in Germany * had almost doubled to six percent within a week.

In Great Britain, the more contagious variant has taken over the predominance - although the vaccinations * are much more advanced there than in Germany.

Easing was stopped there because of increasing incidences.

Ifo on Corona in Germany: "Will we feel it for a long time"

In general, Fuest does not consider the corona crisis * to be ticked off yet.

Without the pandemic, the economy would have grown in the past year and a half, he said.

“Instead, we have accumulated an enormous mountain of debt during this time.

We will feel the effects of the crisis for a long time to come. "

The economists at the Munich institute recently cut their growth forecast for Germany for this year to 3.3 percent - mainly due to bottlenecks in the delivery of preliminary products such as chips for the automotive industry.

According to experts, the economy could reach the pre-crisis level at the beginning of next year.