Few new orders have been received, particularly in German industry, and demand appears to be declining. “Especially from abroad,” explains Van Harn. “There is a slowdown in the Chinese economy and this affects both German exports and German factories.” The macroeconomist calls the fact that German investors are losing confidence an “economic indicator”.
Air conditioners and fans
Not only has confidence in the German economy fallen this week, but the price of European gas has also fallen again after previously showing a sharp increase. Due to the warm weather, traders are seeing increased energy demand for air conditioners and fans, among other things. At the same time, Europe’s gas reserves are well filled, which means that the gas price can be sustained somewhat. Europe has imported a lot of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to replenish its supplies.
Where gas prices fall, according to the Df, the costs of the energy transition will rise by more than seventeen billion euros due to higher interest rates. However, according to macroeconomist Edin Mujagic, it’s not something to worry about. “People act like there’s nothing you can do with an interest rate of four or five percent, but the opposite is true,” says Mujagic. The macroeconomist says people forget that the interest rate before the 2008 crisis was around five percent. “And then the economy went on as usual, so let’s not get too crazy.”
STAP budget
Meanwhile, after a round of the BNR this week, it emerged that almost every Dutchman could receive a thousand euros of government money last year to take a course or training. The UWV paid the so-called STAP budget. This also applies to students who did not show up or barely showed up, which is against the rules of the social security institution. The investigations show that 2.6 million euros have not been claimed.
There was also a setback for Apple this week. Because although the share of the technology company has increased by more than forty percent in the past year, buying Apple shares is no longer worth it. This is the conclusion of UBS analysts, who removed Apple from the buy list. This is mainly due to low sales, says BNR Beurs editor Wesley Weerts. Demand for a new Apple phone is rather disappointing in Europe, the US and China.