The mood in Saxony-Anhalt’s economy has reached a low point. The companies not only express bad economic expectations, some are concerned about their existence.
Halle (dpa/sa) – Saxony-Anhalt’s companies are anxiously looking at future economic developments. “We have replaced one crisis with a new one,” said Danny Bieräugel, economics expert at the Halle-Dessau Chamber of Commerce and Industry, on Wednesday in Halle. After a brief recovery with the end of the corona pandemic, the war in Ukraine would raise numerous new problems. The pessimism observed recently has solidified.
According to the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, energy and raw material prices are a major factor in entrepreneurs’ concerns. According to a survey on the business climate in the second quarter, most companies in the south of the country identified this as the main risk factor for their economic development. That goes across all industries, said Bieräugel. Since the crisis has even worsened in recent weeks, he does not expect any relaxation. “My feeling is that if we did the survey today, we would have even more pessimistic expectations,” said IHK Managing Director Thomas Brockmeier. Most of the poll results were from June.
“The economic condition of the companies in the north of Saxony-Anhalt is worse than it has been since the beginning of our economic survey,” emphasized Klaus Olbricht, President of the Magdeburg Chamber of Industry and Commerce last week. The energy problem, which continued to worsen in the course of the Ukraine war, the high inflation and the ongoing distortions in the supply chains caused the economy to collapse and caused the worst business climate index since it was determined.
From the point of view of the IHK Magdeburg, there must be a clear commitment from the federal government to “support the local economy by all means”. A way had to be found so that the sanctions against Russia would be maintained, but the economy would remain viable. “Although I would always give priority to the viability of the economy in this country,” said Olbricht. The companies are all unsettled and nobody knows what will happen next.
IHK Managing Director Brockmeier became clear on Wednesday. “We are currently seeing the result of a messed up energy policy,” he said. The cause of some of the energy problems is not the Ukraine war, which only makes the misguided policy visible. The federal government must now help in the short term to cushion the “financial excesses”. Brockmeier called for the gas levy to be abolished. This is the “death blow” for energy-intensive companies. In the long term, the extended use of nuclear power plants and pragmatic framework conditions for coal-fired power plants should be discussed.
