Ifo Industry Colloquium 2010

On 25 October 2010 the Ifo Institute conducted its 10th Industry Colloquium in cooperation with the Chamber of Industry and Commerce for Munich and Upper Bavaria with assistance from the Bavarian State Ministry for Economic Affairs, Infrastructure, Transport and Technology. This event aims at providing an analysis of the economy and economic trends in manufacturing, construction, retailing and wholesaling, and in selected service industries. In contrast to last year, this Ifo Industry Colloquium took place amidst signs of a worldwide economic recovery and a clear upswing in economic activity in Germany. The executive manager of the IHK for Munich and Upper Bavaria, Peter Driessen, opened the conference by presenting the results of a recent IHK economic survey, which confirmed that the German economy is experiencing a broad-based recovery; exports are booming and domestic demand has also picked up; capacity utilisation has increased clearly, investment sentiment has not been better for years and businesses are creating new jobs. Martin Zeil, Bavarian Minister of State for Economic Affairs, Transport and Technology, addressed the challenge of stabilising the current economic recovery. A strong industrial base is a prerequisite for a business oriented, highly productive service sector. Here Germany is in a better position than the US or the UK with their comparably large service sectors. After Zeil's presentation, the conference spilt up to examine economic trends in the sectors of manufacturing, commerce, construction and the services. The individual sessions were opened by introductions from Ifo researchers followed by in-depth contributions from external experts. In the final session of the conference, Hans-Werner Sinn spoke on the direction in which the European and German economies are going. He asserted that the German economy has risen like a Phoenix from the ashes of the financial crisis and the recession. In his opinion, a strongly upward economic trend can be expected for Germany as long as the euro rescue package is not extended or continued in a modified form.