Signs of relaxation: The editor-in-chief’s weekly review

Good morning dear readers,

we are in an interesting situation. The doomsday scenarios were still dominating the headlines. All of a sudden, the signs of relaxation are multiplying. “The mood is worse than the situation,” my colleagues from the Handelsblatt Research Institute put the situation in a nutshell. In their analysis, they describe how private consumption is currently driving the economy. But that is not the only positive signal.

In the past two years, the prices that producers have had to pay for primary products such as raw materials and industrial goods have continued to rise. Until now. In October, producer prices fell again for the first time since May 2020, by 4.2 percent compared to September.

Of course, the situation remains difficult for many companies. In particular, the high energy prices are burdening the industry. However, a growing number of companies are adapting to the new situation: 72 percent of medium-sized companies have recently invested in green energy sources or are planning such investments in the short term, reports our company department. Of course they want to reduce their dramatically increased energy costs, but at the same time they modernize their systems in this way. And maybe that’s it, the long-awaited green revolution in industry.

What else kept us busy this week:

1: The criticism was loud: The German economy is too dependent on individual raw material suppliers. The federal government cares too little about supplies. The Handelsblatt had also repeatedly argued in this way. This criticism has apparently reached Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck. Our Berlin office reported exclusively this week that the minister is planning far-reaching measures to make the German economy less dependent on raw materials from abroad. Among other things, Habeck wants to introduce stress tests and reporting requirements for companies, set circular economy quotas and set up a new fund for financial aid.

2: What actually defines the CEOs of tomorrow? Which top executives have the potential to shape the economy across all industries? Who do the biggest headhunters have at the top of their list? Handelsblatt authors around Claudia Panster and Tanja Kewes have investigated these questions – and have compiled a really impressive list of exciting personalities.

3: Escape from Beijing: China has recorded more corona infections than at any time since the beginning of the pandemic. In the economy, there is therefore growing concern about new lockdowns with serious effects – also for the global economy. Our China correspondent Sabine Gusbeth has fled a lockdown twice this week, first from her housing complex and then, on the day of her return flight to Germany, from the Beijing Handelsblatt office. Previously, disease control workers in white full body suits had sealed off the entrance to a neighboring building. Within minutes she left the premises and drove to Beijing Capital International Airport, from where she sent us the last few articles about the current situation in China from the almost deserted terminal.

4: It’s one of the hottest questions these days: How much will real estate prices fall? Real estate reporter Julian Trauthig made calls across the industry – and obtained many exciting figures, graphics and assessments. Anyone interested in trends in the real estate market should read this piece. Interestingly, interest rates are currently falling again.

5: Especially in times of rising prices many consumers turn to private labels. No wonder demand is booming. What might surprise consumers, however, is that despite the increasing demand, the business is no longer worthwhile for many manufacturers, and more and more are disappearing from the market. You become a victim of your own success.

6: Of course, the two reporters Roman Tyborski and Michael Verfürden again this week news from the big data leak at Continental: While the data theft is now also a case for the FBI, the top management is increasingly in need of explanation. According to our research, the cyber attack on Conti took place much earlier than previously thought: the group apparently did not notice anything for four weeks.

7: In an international comparison Germany stands out with particularly low company valuations. This results in lucrative opportunities. Our stock analyst Ulf Sommer analyzes exactly what these are.

8: This week I had Disrupt in my podcast Handelsblatt Guest Volker Wissing, the Federal Minister for Digital and Transport. At the Handelsblatt event “Digital services of general interest” in Berlin, we spoke about Wissing’s digital ideas, his almost foolhardy plan to build roads, rails and bridges twice as fast in the future, the obstacles to the traffic turnaround – about the question of whether he shouldn’t has done too much as digital and transport minister – and in which situations he misses his old part-time job as a church organist. Oh yes, and his family winery is of course also a topic.

9: I’ll be honest with you: I’m already looking forward to the time between the years. Here’s to long evenings and good books – also from this list, for which the Handelsblatt colleagues present the best non-fiction books of the year. But the list is far from finished. Hence my question: Which books impressed you the most this year? write to me [email protected]

I wish you a relaxing weekend.

sincerely
Her
Sebastian Mathes
Editor-in-Chief of the Handelsblatt

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