WELCOME TO GERMANY

Willkommen nach Deutschland !!!

German Flag

German Symbol

Germany Map

Federal Republic of Germany

State : Federal Parliamentary Representative Democratic Republic. Capital: Berlin. Currency: Euro. Official Language: German. Flag: Three horizontal stripes in black, red and gold. Parliament: The Bundestag (614 MPs).

Geography
Germany : A Federation consisting of 16 states. Area : 357,021 km . Neighboring States : Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, and Switzerland. Climate : Moderate oceanic /continental climatic zone with primarily westerly winds.

Population
Largest Population of any EU Member States. One of the Most Densely Populated countries in Europe. Fertility Rate: 1.4 births/woman. 67% of Population aged between 15-65 years. Life Expectancy of 76-81 years. 88% of the population concentrated in cities.

Political System
Legislation: Bicameral (Bundestag & Bundesrat). Multi-Party System. State Structure: Federation of 16 independent states. Suffrage: 18 years of age. Federal President: Prof. Dr. Horst Khler (CDU) since 2004 . Federal Chancellor: Dr. Angela Merkel (CDU) since 2005 .

Economic Indicators
Indicators
GDP (nominal) GDP (PPP) GDP growth GDP per capita (nominal) GDP per capita (PPP) Inflation rate Unemployment rate (F.D.I) (H.D.I) Euro rate (1US$)

2006
$ 2.797 trillion $ 2.522 trillion 1.2 % $ 33845

Share of Foreign trade in GDP Share of Exports in GDP Share of Imports in GDP Share of FDI in GDP Imports

67.8% 36 % 31.8%

2.2 % 717.9 bn 909.7 bn 191.8 bn $59.9 bn $(U.S) 2.8% of GDP 1.54 trillion US $ 2.9%

$ 30,579 1.7 % 8.2% 32.6 bn $ US 0.932 high 0.7356

Exports Trade Balance B.O.P Total Public Debt Industrial Production

STRENGTHS

1.Strategic Location
Gateway to the growth markets of Central and Eastern Europe. Geographic and economic center of Europe. Largest Economy & Market in EU. Largest Population and Largest Contributor to EUs GDP

2. Brand Value

Made

in Germany A worldwide premium brand.

Worlds Largest Exporter. Quality a benchmark.

German Brands
World Renowned German Brands:
Adidas Bayer Bosch BMW DaimlerChrysler- Mercedes Benz  Deutsche Bank  Deutsche Telekom  T-Mobile               Lufthansa Merck Puma Porsche Schwarz Pharma Siemens Staedtler Volkswagon Huga Boss

3.Logistics & Connectivity

Centre of Europe bordering 9 neighboring countries. Railway network : one of the densest in the world Motorways feature more than 12,000 kilometers World Famous Motorways- Autobahn The airports of Frankfurt and Munich, rank among the top ten hubs in the European Union. Hamburg, Germany's principal port handles some one-third of the overall tonnage by weight, in Europe

4.Infrastructure
Telecommunications:- 100% digitalized and highest ISDN density in Europe and 2nd in the World. Availability of cheap Commercial Real Estate. Highly developed and Efficient Power Infrastructure. Industrial infrastructure maintenance services. counting sub-suppliers and

Completely developed Industrial parks.

5.Training & Education

Most preferred higher education destination in Europe. Dual Training System An efficient model and a famous export. World renowned technical universities and colleges of applied sciences. Collaboration of Education & Industry.

6.Innovation and R&D

Patent Registrations: No.1 in Europe ; No.3 in the World. Second largest exporter of R&D intensive goods. R&D expenditure - 2.3 % of the GDP (Second in the world) Contributes 18 % of total global patents annually. Leading Research Institutes. Greatest concentration of innovative companies. 100000 jobs in R&D and 500000 jobs in knowledge based industries.

7.Economy
Social market economy. Most liberalized and deregulated economies in Europe. Worlds third largest economy & largest exporter. Ranked No.1 in Index of Economic Freedom. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index ranked Germany No.1 in Europe and No.5 in the World. Ranked 4th in the world in terms of Business Competitiveness Ranked 13th in the world in terms of Growth Competitiveness and No.2 in Europe. SMEs backbone of the economy. Extremely efficient and internationally oriented base of SMEs.

 German Market capitalization stands at 1.34 bn $(U.S). Current B.O.P +ve US $ 63.4 bn $. Key Sectors:- Automotive, Chemical, Biotechnology, ICT, Logistics, Medical, Nanotechnology, Optical. Investment Magnet: An estimated 22,000 foreign companies operating in Germany. The world's 500 largest companies are among them. Together they employ more than 2.7 million people. Their sales exceeded the trillion euro level.

8.Grants & Subsidies

Development grants covering up to 50% of initial investments irrespective of the citizenship of the investor. Committed to long-term support for innovative small and medium-sized companies. The use of new technologies and environmentally compatible, energy-saving production procedures is promoted in Germany through low-interest loans. There are also subsidies amounting to up to 50 percent for investments in structurally weak areas.

The Govt. also offer various trade fair participation and promotion programs.

 SMEs can claim 20 percent as additional capital allowances and allowances for future investment for moveable assets. The Govt. offers regional funds to promote technology and innovation, research and development, and to improve knowledge transfer.

9.Tax System
The peak tax rate for personal income reduced from 50 % to 42 % in 2005.

The corporate tax reduced from 45 % to 25% in 2005. Distribution of dividends between companies is tax-free.

Capital gains realized by a corporate taxpayer on the sale of shares are generally tax-exempt.

10.Labor Force
The vast majority of the approximate 36 million employed in Germany works in the service sector and in manufacturing. Germanys Trade Union the largest in the World. System of Codetermining.

Legally protected collective wage bargaining has proved its worth; hardly any other industrial nation has as few strikes as Germany. Extremely low number of working days that are lost to strikes and lock-outs compared with other countries around the world.

11.Society & Culture

Differences between rich and poor - potential for social conflict, far lower in Germany than in many other nations. Germany adopting to changes in the economy based on demographic changes. Highest crime clearance rate in Europe 69.4 %. European average of crime clearance 32.9 %. Availability of cheap but efficient Security Systems. Second highest cultural expenditure in Europe.

12.Quality of Environment
Highest Concentration of Ozone compared to any other European city. Very low concentration of Particulate Matter. Very low level of Pollution as a result of stringent environmental standards. Use of modern and environment friendly product & processes.

13. Germany A global country

High degree of legal, economic, and political stability. Reliable partner for foreign companies and an outstanding base for doing business . 70% of all people employed in Germany speak English. Germany is home to many active international communities. People around the world appreciate the high quality of life in Germany. Hosting of numerous prestigious international events a measure of Germanys attractiveness.

CHALLENGES

 Unemployment. Inflation. Economically backward East Germany. High Fiscal deficit. High wages. Rigidity in Labor Market. High Marginal Tax rate.

11.German Governments Policy

Agenda 2010. Further improve business conditions. Formulating much simpler and flexible labor laws, tax laws. Lower corporate and income tax. Increase expenditure on R&D from 2.5% to 3% of GDP. Encouraging interaction between education and industries. Providing extra support for specific basic technologies.

 Maintaining enough monetary restraint to continue the disinflation trend. Achieving Price Stability. Job protection laws are being loosened to boost employment. Incentives for accepting work are being strengthened. Standard unemployment benefits limited to 12 months. Merger of secondary unemployment aid and social welfare benefits.

 Improve conditions for more employment by means of proactive labor market policies. Reduction in non-wage costs. Moderate reform of the labor laws, in particular on dismissal. Increased investments in young persons qualifications. Ease dismissal rules, promote part-time jobs, and extend the uses of fixed-term contracts.

KEY SECTORS

Automobile Industry
German vehicle production ranks No.1 in Europe and No.3 in the World. German automobile companies manufacture more than half of their automobiles domestically. Germany is the leading automobile exporter in the world. European leader in automotive patents. One-third of R&D expenditure on Automotive industry. Support services and maintenance services coupled with necessary infrastructure.

Chemical Industry
No.1 in Chemical Exports worldwide. Sales Volume & Market share-wise No.1 in Europe, 3rd worldwide. 353 foreign companies employing more than 135000 people and having sales amounting to 50 bn Euros approx have invested already. High R&D expenditure. Europes largest Plastic Producer. Worlds Drug Store. Emerging Bio-tech and Nano-technology powerhouse.

Logistics
German dominance in European logistic market. Leader in export of intra-logistics systems. Largest tonnage of cargo in Europe. Industrial logistics contracts make up the major share. Major Investors: UPS, USA (135 mn $) IKEA,Sweden(75mn $)-ProLogis (Japan) (656 mn $).

ICT
With 6% share of worlds ICT market 3rd after US and Japan. With 20% share of European ICT market Germany is the European leader. ICT market growing at 3.2 % pa. Total Turnover of 62 billion Euros. 44.6 million internet users- 3rd in the world. More than 7 lakh people employed in ICT sector. Key areas of growth E-commerce, Internet broadband services, Mobiles and Mobile Applications and IT services.