Dusseldorf Good morning dear readers,
when it came to solidarity in Europe, then Germany has always played a role that oscillated somewhere between gentle patron and strict big brother. During the euro crisis, for example, the federal government repeatedly disciplined the highly indebted countries of southern Europe and strictly monitored that the governments were actually moving on a reform course.
This story is just repeating itself – only with a role reversal: Instead of debt rescue packages for southern Europe, gas rescue programs must now be set up for the economically strongest EU country. French engineers are considering how they can reverse the pumping direction of their gas pipelines in future so that they can supply Germany if the worst comes to the worst. At the same time, Berlin hopes to be able to obtain more liquid gas via the ports of its European neighbors. And the German side has already taken a first look at the full gas storage facilities in Poland.
Support comes from the German EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, who demands that all member states reduce their gas consumption by 15 percent. But this has met with massive criticism. The Spanish Environment Minister Teresa Ribera found particularly clear words.
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It is clear who is meant: Germany, which for years relied on cheap pipeline gas while other countries invested in LNG ports.
Germany’s energy policy divides Europe – to this day. Natural gas should come from the Netherlands rather than Germany, despite the risk of earthquakes. nuclear power? Better not, unless it is delivered from France. The former climate nerd Germany would rather save the nuclear phase-out than the climate and let the lignite-fired power plants start up again.
No wonderthat the rest of Europe is rubbing its eyes in amazement.
One can only hopethat a troika from Spain, France and the Netherlands will not soon be watching over the shower times of the Germans, like the troika from the EU, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and European Central Bank (ECB) once oversaw the budget planning of southern Europeans.
What else has kept us busy this week?
Many observers had expected the personnel – and yet the departure of VW boss Herbert Diess is a bang. He was with the group for seven years. And he was on the verge of being thrown out several times, most recently in early December 2021, when he drew the ire of the employees for bringing about the elimination of 30,000 jobs at the headquarters in Wolfsburg. It was “a smooth sacking so that the group can work again,” reports an insider. His successor is now Oliver Blume, head of the sports car subsidiary Porsche, who in turn is to remain head of Porsche. A tricky mission, because Blume is currently preparing the company’s IPO. My colleague Martin Buchenau portrayed him for you.
The “Lehman moment” of the European energy industry has been averted for the time being: the federal government has agreed on a rescue package for the struggling gas trader Uniper. The state is getting involved with 30 percent of the energy supplier and wants to add another 7.7 billion euros if necessary. Our energy team explains what this means for the industry.
It’s a difficult path, which lies behind the ECB and its boss Christine Lagarde. Almost defiantly, the management of the central bank in Frankfurt’s ECB Tower entrenched themselves behind the same justifications for the low interest rate.
The ECB has now made major changes. The central bank is raising interest rates for the first time in eleven years. This turnaround in interest rates had to come – but it comes too late, write Jan Mallien and Frank Wiebe in the big weekend report. The late turning point may lead Europe straight into recession.
Who hasn’t experienced it, cannot imagine the extent of the chaos at European airports. Suitcases are piled up everywhere, and for many holidaymakers there is little hope that they will even get their luggage on holiday. And yet the “current problems are just the beginning,” says Michael C. Wisser from the ground service provider Wisag. This is just for your information in case you should be on your way on vacation in the next few days. Maybe you’d better pack sparingly.
One of the reasons for the chaos at the airports is unemployment, which has long since reached all corners of the economy. This is also affecting the federal government, which now wants to lower the formal requirements for the entry of skilled workers. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (both SPD) outlined the cornerstones of the new immigration plan in the Handelsblatt this week. It’s a step in the right direction. Many more must now follow.
I’ve been looking forward to this podcast for a long time: For the current episode of Handelsblatt Disrupt I had the 1&1 founder Ralph Dommermuth as a guest. We talked about the coincidence by which his company came into being, about the time of the New Economy crash, in which his company almost went under – and about his plan to build Germany’s most modern mobile network. It has become a very open, very personal conversation that many entrepreneurs would not dare to have. And yes, we also talked about his Ferraris. Incidentally, Dommermuth’s maxim is: “Whoever follows in the footsteps of another will not overtake him.”
Ralph Dommermuth in the Handelsblatt Disrupt podcast.
The corona crisis has drastically changed the world of work. But that was just the beginning, according to the big report by my colleague Mathias Peer from Bangkok: It describes how more and more countries want to attract sun-seeking remote workers – as a substitute for the absent tourists. I know from some large companies that more and more employees are taking advantage of the opportunity. More than 25 countries – including Estonia, Malta, Bermuda, Costa Rica and Greece – have now introduced special visas for remote workers. “Work-from-Thailand Professionals” is the name of the new species. Because in Thailand the hope for these digital nomads is particularly high, writes Peer.
anywhere in the world as many new companies are emerging at the interface between business and science as in the USA. And that’s no coincidence. Because nowhere is the entrepreneurial success of scientific breakthroughs planned so systematically, says my colleague Hannah Krolle, who traveled to the USA for this purpose. According to Krolle, three strategies are crucial for success.
Three years ago my colleague Dana Heide moved to China as a Handelsblatt correspondent. The country she got to know then was different from the country she is leaving today. It is more closed, authoritarian and unfree. “The ruling Communist Party is in the process of winding up almost everything that China has done successfully,” she wrote in a farewell essay.
I wish you a relaxing weekend.
Sincerely,
Her
Sebastian Mathes
Editor-in-Chief of the Handelsblatt
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