Demonstrators take part in a rally during a nationwide so-called Economic Warning Day (Wirtschaftswarntag) on January 29, 2025 in Berlin, as more than 140 associations and over 200 companies from all over Germany are jointly calling on politicians to take measures in order to ensure the country's economic stability. (Photo by Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP)
Berlin: The German government on Wednesday slashed its growth forecasts for 2025 as industry leaders sent dire warnings over the country's economic health and staged nationwide protests to urge reforms.
Output by Europe's largest economy was now expected to increase by just 0.3 percent this year, the economy ministry said.
The figure was significantly lower than the government's previous estimate of 1.1 percent growth made in October last year.
"Germany is stuck in stagnation," Economy Minister Robert Habeck told a press conference in Berlin. Another 12 months of near-zero growth would follow two straight years in which the economy has been in recession.
The downward revision could be traced back to domestic political instability, Habeck said, with Germany headed for an early election on February 23 after the collapse of the government last year.
The return of Donald Trump to the White House and his threat to levy tariffs on key trading partners is also a risk for Germany's export-oriented economy, Habeck said.
Amid the bad economic news, Germany's leading industry associations organised demonstrations in several cities across the country to send a "distress signal" to officials.
A few hundred noisy protestors gathered in front of the Brandenburg Gate in the centre of Berlin's government district.
"When will there be real growth again?" read one sign held by protestors, who blew whistles and sounded horns in front of the monument.
