Word: merkel
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...temperatures dropped to record lows outside, freezing rail lines and bringing mass transport to a halt, Merkel has huddled with her political allies and opponents alike to hammer out a new approach. The shift comes after a raft of bad economic news, with the government now pressing ahead on a number of fronts. Merkel's coalition nearly doubled its stimulus package to €50 billion this week and is drafting plans for a €100 billion Germany Fund to provide credit for midsize businesses. And Commerzbank, Germany's second biggest bank, has said it is to be partly nationalized...
...government is also hatching new plans to support small businesses, many of which are family-owned, have little access to capital markets and are getting squeezed by the credit crunch. Ronald Pofalla, the general secretary of Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), says, "We think that now is the right time to consider creating a Germany Fund, especially to help midsize industry in this difficult period and ensure optimal availability of financing...
...change in Merkel's thinking was forced by the acceptance of economic and political realities. The German economy is sinking faster than most experts thought a month ago. Just this week, Germany's three-year job boom came to a screeching halt when the labor office reported that in December unemployment rose by a seasonally adjusted 18,000, nearly twice the level predicted in a poll of 30 economists by the news agency Bloomberg. It was the first increase in joblessness since February 2006. "The economic crisis has reached the labor market," said Frank-Juergen Weise, head of the Labor...
...Merkel faces a re-election fight in September. Her main opponents are her current partners in government, the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Both parties will be measured by their response to the financial crisis. An early test comes on Jan. 18, when the first of several key state and municipal elections takes place in Hesse. According to polls, Merkel's CDU has a good chance of beating the SPD. It was against this political backdrop that Merkel this week dropped her vehement opposition to cutting taxes, under pressure from allies within her conservative alliance. "The people expect tax relief," said...
...Merkel is also returning to the international stage. After being seen as a major power broker in the first two years of her administration - Forbes has twice picked her as the world's most powerful woman - when the financial crisis hit, Merkel seemed to wilt, clueless as to how to respond. But now she is moving out in front again, showing that Germany is keen to play an active role in resolving international crises. Germany was quick to supply troops to fight pirates in the Gulf of Aden, and Merkel has been urging a cease-fire in Gaza...