The US stock markets went down sharply yesterday. The technology index Nasdaq Composite closed more than five percent in the red, the stock index S&P 500 a good four percent. The reason was US inflation. It fell from 8.5 to 8.3 percent year-on-year. However, analysts had expected a value of 8.1 percent.
The fact that a difference of two tenths of a percent immediately triggers a small stock market tremor shows above all that the players on the financial markets are currently as nervous as a bunch of racetrack gamblers before the decisive gallop final. The next interest rate decision by the US Federal Reserve is due in a week. Observers expect the Fed to raise interest rates again by 0.75 percentage points, which increases the risk of a recession.
Even if the figures look similar, the causes of inflation in Europe and the US are different: According to economist Paul Krugman, euro inflation is being driven by a “gigantic energy price shock”. The USA, on the other hand, is struggling with an overheated economy – a consequence of government stimulus programs that were too lavish.
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With the price shock, the moment of unpleasant truths has come in German energy policy. The Russian gas supplies are gone, and they probably won’t come back either. The country is currently discussing how to save itself over the coming winter.
But the time after is just as important: With pipeline gas, Germany lacks the energy source that should serve as a bridge for us in the years to come, until renewables have been expanded sufficiently.
But what follows from this? Not enough so far, complains Handelsblatt energy policy expert Klaus Stratmann:
There’s a huge gap. This also applies if the expansion of renewables is massively promoted.
His demands:
- Stretch operation for the remaining three nuclear power plants
- Farewell to the planned phase-out of coal by 2030
- Testing gas production through fracking in Germany
Conclusion: With this editorial, my colleague certainly does not qualify as the king of hearts in the Green Youth. One should read his text carefully in these circles.
(Photo: IMAGO/photothek)
The decline of Deutsche Bahn in terms of reliability and customer orientation coincided with the reconquista of the group by politicians. In terms of market ideology, I’m not solid enough to immediately construct a causality from the correlation. But the thought is already obvious: A company that has to please politicians and trade unionists in particular simply can no longer do its utmost to take care of the needs of passengers.
It was announced last week that Secretary of State Werner Gatzer is to become the new head of the supervisory board of Deutsche Bahn AG. Now it is also clear: He should also keep his job in the Federal Ministry of Finance. The personal interdependence between politics and the state-owned company, which has been criticized by the Federal Audit Office, has thus reached a new level.
After all, Gatzer’s predecessor, Michael Odenwald, had resigned from his job as state secretary before he became the railway’s chief inspector. His predecessor Utz-Hellmuth Felcht came as a manager from the chemical industry.
On the other hand, Gatzer is one of the most experienced people this federal government has to offer. If he contributes to the trains running on time again and there is still something to eat in the dining car behind Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, we should stick with Deng Xiaoping: “It doesn’t matter whether it’s a white cat or a black cat, it catches mice, it’s one good cat.”
The government’s exit from Lufthansa was successful: The Federal Finance Agency announced that the Economic Stabilization Fund (WSF) had sold its last remaining stake of almost ten percent to international investors as part of a block placement. At EUR 1.07 billion, the total proceeds were significantly higher than the EUR 306 million used to acquire the shares.
The federal government took a stake in the airline during the 2020 corona pandemic to save it from bankruptcy. And now refutes the floor wisdom that it is very easy to exit the stock market with a small fortune – all you have to do is take a large fortune and invest it in airline stocks.
After a pause of several months, Chancellor Olaf Scholz called Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday. According to the federal government, Scholz pushed for a diplomatic solution to the war in Ukraine, based on a ceasefire, a complete withdrawal of Russian troops and the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine.
The Kremlin’s statement sets other priorities: Putin has drawn the Chancellor’s attention to the “outrageous violations” by the Ukrainians of international humanitarian law, it said. The Ukrainian army is shelling cities in the Donbass and killing civilians there.
Despite these discrepancies, it’s good that the conversation between Scholz and Putin continues. As improbable as that may seem at the moment, nothing would be more tragic than missing a possible window for a diplomatic solution because no one from the western camp is speaking to Putin anymore.
And then there is the multi-entrepreneur Elon Musk, who first wanted to buy the short message service Twitter, then no longer wanted to buy and may now have to buy. On Tuesday, a majority of Twitter shareholders voted in favor of Musk’s acquisition. The Tesla boss announced in April that he wanted to acquire Twitter, but then backed out. Twitter now wants to legally force Musk to go through with the deal for around $44 billion. The trial begins on October 17.
We believe that anyone who has ever ordered the large grilled platter “Zeus” from the Greek and was already full when it was served will be able to sympathize with the richest man in the world in this matter.
Best regards
Her
Christian Rickens
Editor-in-Chief Handelsblatt
hp: How can German companies benefit from growing Asian markets without becoming dangerously dependent? The digital German-Asian business conference of the Handelsblatt, Asia Business Insights, deals with this question today. In Düsseldorf, we want to discuss with BASF board member Dr. Markus Kamieth, the Indonesian Ambassador HE Arif Havas Oegroseno and the Asia Manager of the Freudenberg Group, Bettina Schön-Behanzin. Register here free of charge for the digital live stream.
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