Our figure of the month
In today's information age we are surrounded by an almost infinite amount of data. Each month, the GWS-WiSo-team selects a particularly interesting economic and/or social topic or question from the multitude of available information, which is highlighted as the "number of the month". The current number as well as the earlier numbers of the month can be found here.
Private consumption and the region: a weakening bond?
Is consumer spending by private households still regionally bound? This question is crucial for regional development, as household spending accounts for around 50 % of gross domestic product, at least at a national level. If the…
World Savings Day – but who saves at all?
Saving is traditionally an important but also sensitive topic in Germany. The Germans have the reputation of being the "world champions in saving". And indeed, the savings rate of Germans is on average over 10% – only a few countries…
Young talent for the construction industry – a look at apprenticeship figures in the construction and finishing trades
The construction industry is currently caught between slumping order numbers due to high construction and financing costs and the German government's goal of building 400,000 homes a year. In addition, the finishing trade in particular…
Turning point in the manufacturing sector
German industry is in the midst of times of structural upheaval and faces a variety of challenges: High energy costs, inflation, a shortage of skilled workers, crippling digitalization, decarbonization and the global trend towards…
Median wages on spatial planning regions
For the analysis of wage developments, the Federal Employment Agency evaluates the medians of the monthly gross wages of full-time employees subject to social insurance at the place of work at the end of the year. At the regional level,…
Employees affected by a peatland restoration project
The drained moors in Germany emit as many emissions annually as the entire German air traffic. For centuries, peatlands have been drained to meet the growing demand for settlement and agricultural land [1]. Systematic drainage has led to…
Expenditures for energy and food place a particularly heavy burden on lower incomes
The inflation rate in Germany remains at a high level even after more than a year of war in Ukraine. Although the consumer price index has now weakened for the second month in a row, it remains significantly elevated and places a…
The higher interest rates have not yet stopped the rise of the house prices
Higher financing costs and increased material costs have hardly slowed down the house prices for a single-family home in Germany. A detached single-family house from the existing buildings with a living space of around 125 sqm, in a…
Number of people in need of care in Germany doubles to 5 million within ten years
The latest care statistics show that there will be around 4.96 million people in need of care in Germany in 2021, a huge increase on previous years. All persons who receive benefits from social long-term care insurance are counted as…
Demand for environmental professionals in Germany 2021
The consequences of climate change are increasingly being felt in Germany. It is estimated that since 2000, damage caused by climate change impacts in Germany has averaged 6.6 billion euros per year. The floods in the Ahr valley and the…