1. Leipzig, car drove through a shopping district....killing 2, wounding 3.
Guy is local boxer-trainer....known to police (meaning they've had encounters with him before)....German....had been recently released from a psychiatric hospital.
2. Focus business article: "Managers and entrepreneurs have never been as disappointed with the political leadership in Berlin as they are after just one year of the Merz government. The bitter consequences of this inability to reform are already becoming apparent."
End of 2024....commerce core of Germany were desiring a true recovery out of the Covid-era....have yet to really see it.
3. New Mercosur agreement.....between EU and South American countries in effect. Big shipment of Brazilian chicken ordered/delivered to Greece. Test done....EIGHTY-percent of first shipment....contaminated with Salmonella,
4. The wealth tax (Vermögenssteuer) is now being discussed in Germany. Proposal to reintroduce an annual tax on high net personal wealth (assets minus liabilities, like real estate, stocks, cash, etc., but not on income).
I should say this...up until 1997....such a tax existed in old West Germany and unified Germany....Constitutional Court examined it, and said it was unfairly written.
Negatives? Well...capital flight will obviously occur. I will note that some folks are commenting that this idea violates the coalition agreement that rules out tax increases (CDU would have to agree strongly with this). Critics also point to past experiences and studies showing wealth taxes can be hard to administer and may reduce investment.
Likely passing? I'd give it a 50-50 chance. On the positive side....current stagnation would continue, and more German companies would be bought-out/owned by Chinese operations. This would speed up declining public support of both CDU and SPD parties....leading to gains for Greens/Linke and AfD.
5. BYD (China car company) in talks to buy a VW factory in Dresden.
6. Study done....on Germans having 'cash' to invest in retirement funds....roughly two out of three....lack such cash-flow.
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