Germany’s fractious coalition government collapsed on Wednesday, tipping the economically embattled nation into a political crisis and adding uncertainty for Europe as the region grapples with Donald Trump’s election win in the U.S., the Wall Street Journal reported. Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed Finance Minister Christian Lindner, chairman of the pro-business Free Democratic Party—the smallest member of his three-way coalition of free-market liberals, social democrats and Greens—because of disagreements over economic policy, a spokesman for Scholz said.
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Germany
German manufacturing orders jumped more than expected in September, driven by large-scale orders, offering a glimpse of hope that the recent downturn in the beleaguered sector may be abating, the Wall Street Journal reported. Orders climbed 4.2% on month in September, according to data published Wednesday by Germany’s statistics agency Destatis. That was better than economists’ expectations for a 1.4% rise, according to a Wall Street Journal poll, and contrasts with the 5.4% fall in August orders.
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German air-taxi maker Lilium said on Monday it would file for insolvency "soon," after efforts to solve its cash-crisis failed to yield results, Reuters reported. The move highlights the difficulties faced by startup aviation firms in an industry that is capital intensive and has high entry barriers. It also comes as air-taxi makers navigate challenges in developing batteries powerful enough for their aircraft and convincing the public of their safety, even as they deal with an evolving regulatory environment.
Germans are eager to sell hundreds of billions of euros’ worth of goods in Italy, while drinking its wines, skiing its Alps and sunning on its beaches. But in the weeks since UniCredit, a multinational bank based in Milan, swooped in to take a 21 percent stake in Commerzbank, one of Germany’s largest lenders, that fondness has been shown to have its limits, the New York Times reported.
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German inflation quickened more sharply than expected and exceeded the European Central Bank’s 2% target – underpinning the challenges for policymakers in deciding on the pace and extent of further monetary-policy easing, Bloomberg News reported. Consumer-price growth in Europe’s largest economy picked up to 2.4% in October from 1.8% the previous month – well above the 2.1% median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. Base effects linked to energy helped drive the uptick, with services, goods and food also contributing, according to statistics agency Destatis.
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Kelheim Fibers GmbH has applied for protective shield proceedings (bankruptcy protection) at the Regensburg District Court in Germany. The court ruling followed the application and thus paved the way for further implementation of the plan renovation course, Nonwovens-Industry.com reported. The company had already developed a restructuring plan with its financiers in June and its home city Kelheim also made a significant contribution with the acquisition of the VfL property from Kelheim Fibers GmbH.
The Schoeller Group is in exclusive talks to buy Signa’s Upper West tower in Berlin, according to people familiar with the matter, in one of the most closely watched property transactions in Germany, Bloomberg News reported. The industrialist family’s investment office has been picked for exclusive negotiations after several rounds of bids for the building that is part of Austrian tycoon Rene Benko’s defunct empire. The insolvency administrator of Signa Prime Selection AG had been nearing a deal to sell the property for more than €400 million ($432 million), Bloomberg previously reported.
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German landlord Adler Group SA is looking to refinance senior debt it took out as part of a restructuring earlier this year in an effort to lower its servicing costs, Bloomberg News reported. Adler is looking at a number of options to reduce the cost of its first lien debt, including using proceeds from asset sales to repay part of it. It has also approached investors to refinance some debt at a lower rate. Talks about Adler’s options are at preliminary stages and might not lead to a deal.
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Volkswagen plans to shut at least three factories in Germany, lay off tens of thousands of staff and shrink its remaining plants in Europe's biggest economy as it plots a deeper-than-expected overhaul, the company's works council head said on Monday, Reuters reported. Europe's biggest carmaker has been negotiating for weeks with unions over plans to revamp its business and cut costs, including considering plant closures on home soil for the first time, in a blow to Germany's industrial prowess.
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Lilium NV said its main subsidiaries may be forced to file for insolvency proceedings within days as the electric flying taxi firm struggles to raise enough funding to continue operations, Bloomberg News reported. The subsidiaries have become “overindebted” and won’t be able to pay existing liabilities, according to a filing on Thursday. Management of the units has told the parent company that they will have to file for insolvency under German law and will apply for self-administration proceedings, the filing said. The startup’s shares fell as much as 63% as of 10:39 a.m.
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