The new Handelsblatt: The editor-in-chief’s weekly review

Good morning dear readers,

like the economy the Handelsblatt is also constantly evolving. From Monday our newspaper will therefore look different: We will appear with one refreshed layout and a new structure. In this way, we want to focus more on the economic issues that affect companies and politics most intensively and at the same time the print edition even better with ours Podcasts, newsletters and events interlock.

In the face of global uncertainties, we’re building ours international reporting from what is expressed in the new structure right at the beginning of the newspaper, in the politics section. Reports from our worldwide network of correspondents will be placed more prominently there in future.

At the same time, we are also expanding our network guest authors clearly. The most recent additions are the former ambassador and former chairman of the Munich Security Conference, Wolfgang Ischinger, and security policy expert Claudia Major from the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik.

In addition, we emphasize our reports and analyzes on technological upheavals in our own columns and sections. Because the Handelsblatt wants its position as an early indicator for the most important economic and technological developments still expand.

The current geopolitical tensions are accompanied by countless breakthroughs and upheavals in companies all over the world. Because in uncertainty, a lot of new things emerge. And we know from the past that many of the really big ideas emerge in the middle of the really big crises.

In the Handelsblatt we will accompany and describe these major changes in industry and in small and medium-sized businesses and classify them in political, entrepreneurial and technological contexts.

We always want them too brains behind these changes introduce. That’s why the portraits of the people in business, of the entrepreneurs and researchers, move forward from the magazine to the departments. Because business is made by people.

They have always belonged too Reports on banks, insurance companies and real estate groups to the DNA of the Handelsblatt. They are now at the front of the company department. In the financial section, on the other hand, we concentrate even more on market events, financing trends, innovations and the monetary policy of the international central banks. After all, the turbulence on the international financial markets is more likely to increase than decrease. The figures show that our readers are more interested in these topics than ever before.

At the end of the newspaper you will therefore find a clear one expanded section on developments on the international financial and commodity markets. There we examine market movements, analyze the most important charts – and explain how investors can navigate through the turbulent times.

Of course we won’t stopTo change ourselves also applies to our digital offerings: After we revised our app in 2021, the next step is our website.

But first our print edition. Monday is the day. I’m curious how you like our conversion. Write me your suggestions, criticism and also praise.

What else kept us busy this week:

1. Britain is becoming more and more like Italy – only with less sun. Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned after just 44 days. But the political chaos that Truss caused with her hair-raising economic policy is not only a tragedy for the motherland of democracy, but also has five lessons for other democratic nations, analyzes London correspondent Torsten Riecke.

2. The shares of the energy company RWE dropped significantly at times on Wednesday – the reason for this was a report by my colleague Klaus Stratmann, who learned exclusively from the Ministry of Economic Affairs that the federal government is planning a 90 percent special tax on excess profits from energy companies in order to finance a new electricity price brake. The idea behind it: Every household should receive a basic quota of discounted electricity.

3. It’s a conflict, which could develop into the next coalition dispute: the planned takeover of part of the Port of Hamburg by the Chinese state-owned company Cosco. The Chancellery wants to approve it, but the Economics Ministry is against it. Handelsblatt reporters from Berlin and Brussels analyze why there is so much at stake and why EU diplomats are looking at Germany with dismay.

4. This interview moved a particularly large number of readers of the Handelsblatt last week: Gita Gopinath, Vice President of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), warned in clear terms that next winter could be even more difficult than the weeks ahead. Particularly affected by the shocks: Germany. She is only saying what many suspect anyway. But then she also finds words of praise for Christian Lindner’s financial policy course.

5. What has not been written about AI: That algorithms will soon rob millions of people of their existence, could decode secret human thoughts – and be as dangerous as nuclear weapons. Tech pioneer Elon Musk recently made this prediction. However, if you look at the companies, you will find a completely different reality there: In many cases, AI has not yet arrived there – despite breathtaking technical advances. Stephan Scheuer and Thomas Jahn describe the reason: There is a lack of specialists, data and security concepts. But the risks of using the new technology are smaller than missing the trend.

6. In times of crisis, the headlines dominated by bad numbers and doomsday scenarios. But it is precisely in such phases that I also find the stories of companies that are reinventing themselves exciting. The fan world market leader EBM Pabst is such a case. In the Handelsblatt interview, the new boss, Klaus Geißdörfer, explains how he is completely realigning the company – even though he is losing ten percent of his sales as a result. And what does he no longer do? “Supplying the Auto Industry”. This is also called “creative destruction”.

7. A dramatic turnaround is taking place in the financial markets: Bond markets are experiencing an historic crash, stock markets are more unsettled than they have been in years – and then there are fears of recession and inflation. You can read in our large weekend report how investors can navigate through this difficult time. In it, Handelsblatt financial experts describe what a 20-, 40-, and 60-year-old model investor does best with his portfolio. Spoilers: The crisis is a good time for newcomers.

8. After years of growth the construction financing business begins to falter. Experts are expecting a decline – even a standstill. This could become a problem for banks.

9. And then another era ends these days: My esteemed colleague Hans-Jürgen Jakobs, whom you all know from the morning briefing, is retiring. “JJ”, as he is called in the editorial team, wrote his last newsletter yesterday. In a wonderful farewell essay, he looks back on the development of the media over the course of his long and successful career. It also contains many anecdotes like this one: “Only once did the “Morning Briefing” only appear at ten o’clock. The “host” of the Morgenlese inadvertently sent the thought process, which, as always, took a bit too long, not to the large mailing list, but only to himself.” All the best, dear JJ, and I am very pleased that you will remain with us as an author !

Anyone who would like to experience Hans-Jürgen Jakobs live again should keep Monday evening free: At a virtual event only for Handelsblatt subscribers, I will discuss his new book “Das Monopol in the 21st Century” with him and the question of how monopolies affect our prosperity endanger.

Have a relaxing weekend everyone.

Best regards
Her
Sebastian Mathes
Editor-in-Chief of the Handelsblatt

hp: You can receive the Morning Briefing plus free of charge as part of your Handelsblatt digital subscription or subscribe separately here.