DIW Weekly Report

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Productivity: Urban-Rural Differences Affect Productivity More Than East-West Differences

Following reunification, productivity in eastern Germany grew rapidly. A strong industrial sector is key to a thriving German economy. However, the narrowing of the industrial productivity gap between eastern and western Germany has come to a standstill since the financial and economic crisis and the gap remains considerable today. Nevertheless, when comparing similar regions in eastern and western ...

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Volunteering on the Rise: Generation of 1968 More Active Even in Retirement

According to representative survey results of the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), volunteer rates have been continually rising in Germany over the past 30 years. Contributing factors include young adults’ growing willingness to volunteer as well as an increase in the volunteer behavior of older people, who begin to volunteer more often after entering retirement. A generational comparison shows that the ...

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A New Climate for Europe: 2030 Climate Targets Must Be More Ambitious

Amidst other national and global climate protection initiatives, the new EU Commission under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen is facing the challenge of concretely following through on previous announcements regarding an ambitious climate policy. Specifically, action must be taken to raise the 2030 climate targets and the 2050 long-term strategy must be revised in adherence with the Paris Agreement. ...

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Monetary Policy Can Have Heterogeneous Effects on the Investment Behavior of Women and Men

The ultra-loose monetary policy of recent years has raised concerns that the low interest rate environment may overly benefit households with specific demographic and financial characteristics. In this context, monetary policy can be a potential driver of gender wealth inequality, since women are known to be more risk averse, less financially literate, and to participate less in the financial markets ...

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Housing Market Regulation Has Contributed to the Worldwide Triumph of Home Ownership

The present report presents new historical data based on country comparisons and research results regarding rent control and its long-term effect on the home ownership rate in 27 countries. Policy measures of rent control, protection against eviction, and housing space management have been widespread in most of the countries studied—particularly in continental Europe—in the past 100 years. At the same ...

Gender Quotas in a European Comparison: Tough Sanctions Most Effective

Women remain significantly underrepresented in the top decision-making bodies in the private sector. Over the past few years, increasingly more European countries have introduced statutory gender quotas to combat this underrepresentation. Other European countries have instead relied on voluntary gender diversity recommendations in the national corporate governance codes. Statutory gender quotas are ...

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German Economy: A Recession Is Not Automatically a Crisis: DIW Economic Outlook

The slowdown in the global economy and the uncertainties caused by Brexit have affected the export-oriented German economy, which is expected to grow by only 0.5 percent this year. However, the German economy has not slid into a crisis due to marked fiscal policy stimuli and favorable developments on the labor market. Private consumption remains a mainstay of the economy; in addition, there is moderate ...

The Global Economy and the Euro Area: Uncertainty Weighing on World Trade and Industry: DIW Economic Outlook

The ongoing trade conflicts initiated by the US and the uncertainty surrounding Brexit are negatively affecting the global economy. Global trade and investment activity, and thus in many places industrial output, are the areas most impacted. Consumption, however, is continuing to support the economy in many countries. DIW Berlin is expecting global GDP to grow to 3.7 percent this year and to slightly ...

Growth Program Needed as the Foundation of the German Economy Crumbles: Editorial

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Economic Outlook Better than Expected Despite Pandemic: Editorial

Research and Development Abroad: German Companies Focus on Strengths Similar to Those at Home

More than one in four patents that major German companies apply for is based on inventions from their research laboratories abroad. In three quarters of the cases, the companies have focused on technologies in which they are very strong at home. Therefore, to a great extent the technological research and development performance at their home location determines the innovative power of globally active ...

Heat Monitor 2018: Rising Heating Energy Demand, Thermal Retrofit Rate Must Increase

Residential heating accounts for almost one-fifth of Germany’s final energy consumption. This report evaluates an extensive database of heating bills for buildings with two or more apartments, representing more than two-thirds of the total housing stock in Germany. Despite commitments to pressing climate targets, the rate of thermal upgrades of the existing housing stock has remained low since the ...

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