• Germany edition
Business & Money
Photo: DPA

German economy to be overtaken by 2060

Published: 10 Nov 12 13:20 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/money/20121110-46091.html

Germany's importance as an economic player will decline significantly by 2060 as its population grows older and in the face of China and India's rapid growth, the OECD has reported.

Germany's days as the fifth largest economy in the world are numbered, according to a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released on Friday.

Germany's economy - currently only behind the USA, China, Japan and India in terms of size, is set be surpassed by Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Britain and Russia, by 2060, predicted the organisation.

According to the OECD, the main reason for the slump in Germany's share of world economic performance - which will drop from 4.8 percent today to 2 percent in 50 years' time - is demographic change, as its population grows older - a phenomenon also due to hit Japan on a large scale.

China, set to overtake the USA in four years as the world's biggest economy, helped by a population of over 1.3 billion, has already this year contributed more to the world economy than all eurozone countries combined. By 2060 India will also have overtaken Europe, said OECD.

The organisation hopes this “shift of economic weight towards low wage countries” will help raise living standards in the poorest areas of the world. Per capita income is expected to quadruple in the world's most impoverished nations by 2060, narrowing the current gap between the living standards of the world's richest and poorest people.

“Courageous structural reforms can stimulate growth and improve living conditions everywhere in the world,” said OECD General Secretary Angel Gurría.

DPA/The Local/jlb

What do you think? Leave your comment below.


Your comments about this article:

02:27 November 11, 2012 by Gottfried Falc Rittermarsch
Comment removed by The Local for breach of our terms.
05:05 November 11, 2012 by DOZ
Good lock with that. Your demise will be before 2030 unless you amalgamate with Russia. The amalgamation will include ideology. The West is falling quickly.
09:15 November 11, 2012 by ovalle3.14
Comment removed by The Local for breach of our terms.
17:11 November 11, 2012 by sonriete
I think way too much time and energy are spent debating these tables. There will always be a market for German goods and services, Germany will be fine. I don't buy this idea that every country must grow and grow in order to be competitive. What do these people propose as a solution anyway? Massive immigration to pull the population up to 200 Million? The whole world will need to face the fact that human population should be declining, not growing in order to have balance between man and nature. For populations to decline, they naturally must also age dramatically the first few decades to reach that correct balance where we do not destroy this earth.
11:16 November 12, 2012 by Berlin fuer alles
Well said sonriete. All we hear is what business needs to continue growing profits and nothing about how the earth's natural resources cannot continue to support this. If a company's profits grow at a slower rate than previously this is considered a negative. They want profits to grow at a faster pace than previously. Why should it not be positive for a company to continue making a profit even if it is less than previously? If I had a business that made one million profit in a year and the next year it made 750K profit I would still be happy.
16:53 November 12, 2012 by MrNosey
The predictions are rubbish, as always. They're based on a straightline extrapolation of past trends without bearing in mind that growth rates in the BRICS will also slow as they become wealthier. China also has a fast-approaching demographic timebomb because of its one-child policy, not to mention political troubles ahead.
20:41 November 12, 2012 by 883
MrNosey:

WELL SAID. So many seem to overlook the problems that China has looming. Long term, their concerns are some of the most daunting for them AND for other nations.
00:20 November 13, 2012 by bobmarchiano
2060 Our governments cant handle 2013 yet.

European counties will need to get a handle on Greece,Italy and Spain first.
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Business & Money headlines
Photo: DPA

Hamburg to be run by at least 40 percent women

Hamburg city state has taken the first steps to introducing a women's quota in management - passing a law saying that no committee can be staffed by more than 60 percent of a single gender. READ () »

Photo: DPA

German investor confidence on the up

German investor sentiment rose slightly in June, on firming hopes for a gradual recovery in Europe's biggest economy in the second half of the year, the ZEW economic institute said on Tuesday. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Commerzbank 'to shed 5,000 jobs'

Commerzbank, Germany's second largest bank, looks set to shed 5,000 jobs, it emerged on Tuesday. The move is part of an attempt to recover from heavy losses incurred during the 2008-2009 financial crisis. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Deutsche Bahn fires staff in corruption clean-up

Deutsche Bahn has fired more than 30 managers who were involved in bribery - and is withdrawing from a slew of countries where corruption is rife. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Sun sets on Siemens solar division

German tech giant Siemens has drawn a line under its foray into the solar power business and is closing down the division, business newspaper the Handelsblatt reported on Monday. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Motorists flush away millions in toilet tickets

Motorists in Germany are throwing away millions of euros - by not cashing in the 'refund' ticket handed out by public toilet companies operating at autobahn stops. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Germany joins EU youth unemployment fight

Germany, Italy, France and Spain sent their economy and labour ministers to Rome on Friday to try to find ways to reduce the mass youth unemployment blighting the lives of millions across Europe. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Canny footballer shoots, scores, is banned

A German amateur footballer who took part in a goal-shooting competition organized by an electronics retail chain, won thousands of euros worth of goods for himself, friends and even complete strangers - until the store banned him. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Rat poison found at Lidl supermarkets

The German discount supermarket chain Lidl was under fire on Thursday for reportedly scattering rat poison on its produce shelves - without warning customers or reporting a rodent problem to the authorities. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Berlin: EU can find 'good solution' to US free trade

Germany is confident the EU will find a "good solution" despite differences and hand the EU Commission a mandate to negotiate a landmark free-trade accord with the United States, a government source said on Friday. READ () »

More Business & Money

See all ads | Join the Marketplace

Jobs in Germany, in English

909 jobs available
659 new jobs this week
82 new jobs today

ALL JOBS »

Latest Business & Money news from Sweden
News from the Goethe-Institut
News from DeutschlandOnline

Toytown Germany
Germany's English-speaking crowd
Trade CFDs with InterTrader.com
Start trading shares, equities, forex, etc. No commission on equities; Low min. margins. Apply for a CFDs account now!
Little house in Spain
'Charming, old, beamed cottage for holiday let in Jesus Pobre, Alicante, Spain
www.littlehouseinspain.com/
Albatross Insurance
Professional and qualified consultancy on all insurance and finance matters in Germany, Telephone: +49 2163 571 1740, Email: bg@albatross-assurance.com
www.albatross-assurance.com
Hotel reservations in Berlin
Visiting Berlin anytime soon? Book your hotel in Berlin here.
Rental apartments in Berlin
For home-from-home holiday accommodation, search for a Berlin apartment to rent.