Germany’s economic model is broken, and no one has a plan B

Workers at Audi's Ingolstadt plant turned out more than 400,000 vehicles in 2023.

Sun, 02 Feb 2025

By Tom Fairless and Bertrand BenoitChristian Scharpf, mayor of Germany’s second-richest city, Ingolstadt (pop 140,000), is looking for ways to save close to €100 million (NZ$185m). Carmaker Audi, headquartered here near the Danube River, used to pump more than €100m a year in municipal tax into Ingolstadt’s coffers through its parent, Volkswagen, but those flows dried up over a year ago. In November, Audi reported a 91% decline in operating profit for the three months through to September and has been cutting th...

Subscribe to BusinessDesk

Stay informed on business, government and financial developments across New Zealand.

Stay informed on business, government and financial developments across New Zealand.
Deeply researched, twice-edited and fact-checked news
Annual subscribers also receive a complimentary subscription to The Wall Street Journal
Personalised email news alerts, plus gift up to 5 stories a month to non-subscribers

You can cancel anytime with two clicks, an email or a phone call.
Find out more.

We are serious about journalism.

Name {{ registerForm.errors.get('name') }}

Email address {{ registerForm.errors.get('email') }}

Phone Number {{ registerForm.errors.get('phone') }}

Job Title {{ registerForm.errors.get('title') }}

Password Minimum password length of 8 characters.
Require at least one upper and lowercase, numeric, and special character. {{ registerForm.errors.get('password') }}

Repeat password {{ registerForm.errors.get('password_confirmation') }}

We had trouble validating your card. It's possible your card provider is preventing us from charging the card. Please contact your card provider or customer support.

Credit Card

Cardholder's name

{{ __(plans[index].interval) | capitalize }} {{ plans[index].attributes.old_price | currency }} {{ plans[index].price | currency }}

All subscriptions auto renew but are easy to cancel.

I Accept The Terms Of Service

{{ registerForm.errors.get('terms') }}

Tax: {{ taxAmount(selectedPlan) | currency }}

Total Price Including Tax: {{ priceWithTax(selectedPlan) | currency }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerSeat ? '/ '+ spark.seatName : '' }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerTeam ? '/ '+ __('teams.team') : '' }} / {{ __(selectedPlan.interval) | capitalize }}