Economy
Related: About this forumGermany confirms 2017 surplus and GDP growth
Germany's statistics office has said the German state last year logged the highest annual surplus since the country reunited in 1990. The result came on the back of record-low unemployment and low interest rates.
The German government, the country's 16 states and its communities posted a budget surplus of 36.6 billion ($44.9 billion) in 2017, the National Statistics Office (Destatis) reported Friday, slightly revising an earlier estimate of 38.4 billion.
The figure marked the fourth annual surplus in a row in Europe's powerhouse, which no longer has any difficulty sticking to the European budget deficit rules as laid down in the Maastricht Treaty, and which stipulate that governments' fresh borrowing must not exceed 3 percent of gross domestic product.
http://www.dw.com/en/germany-confirms-2017-surplus-and-gdp-growth/a-42706491
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Trump will say it's because they don't spend enough to defend themselves.
no_hypocrisy
(46,185 posts)democratisphere
(17,235 posts)Farmer-Rick
(10,207 posts)Yeah, we did too last year but we just went from negative to a slightly smaller negative.
"When adjusted for inflation, the trade deficit fell to $61.0 billion from $62.8 billion in May."
And the German government keeps its borrowing low....not so much the US what with so many huge tax cuts for the ultra wealthy.
quartz007
(1,216 posts)So long we can borrow and spend, let the parrty keep going.
Let the grand children worry about debt.