According to BDI Chairman Peter Leibinger, the majority of German companies will be unable to pay their employees relief bonuses of up to 1,000 euros. Speaking to the Rheinische Post on Saturday, Leibinger stated, “Most companies will not be able to afford the 1,000-euro bonus”. He pointed out that the previous coronavirus crisis saw a bonus up to 3,000 euros, an opportunity many companies utilized. However, Leibinger noted that, “today, we are three recession years later. Companies are suffering from massive underutilization, and order books are empty”.
Furthermore, he lowered expectations regarding a fuel tax cut to alleviate the energy price crisis. Leibinger explained that the problem is not a brief price shock but rather a structural increase in energy costs. He anticipated that electricity prices would not simply drop quickly but would, at best, gradually decline over the course of 2027. The BDI chief argued that the state cannot subsidize a permanent market change.
While acknowledging that a fuel tax cut could be a short-term viable option, he criticized the approach, suggesting that it would have been more sensible to provide targeted support for industries and low-income individuals who are particularly affected by such abrupt price increases. Leibinger finished by saying that it is historically inopportune that the Iran War and the debate over high gasoline prices are overshadowing crucial reform issues for Germany, advising that the government should now focus all its energy on those matters. He dismissed a windfall tax as “unsuitable”.
