The trend of job reductions within the German economy has stopped, according to the September data released by the Ifo Employment Barometer. This monthly indicator is calculated by the Munich-based research institution for the publication Handelsblatt.
Klaus Wohlrabe, the chief statistician at the Ifo Institute, informed Handelsblatt that the downward trajectory in the labor market has paused for the time being. However, he stressed that for job creation to truly begin, the economic upswing must continue consistently, both in quantity and duration. Currently, companies remain cautious regarding their personnel planning, with Wohlrabe noting that widespread unwillingness to hire new staff persists across large sections of the economy.
The September figures reveal varied signals across different sectors. In the industrial sector, job losses are still registering, according to Ifo’s data, but the negative figures are considerably smaller than they were over the past three years. Similarly, the trade sector continued to see more job losses than gains. Conversely, for service providers, the September data shows a positive balance for the first time in a long period.
The Barometer’s value is derived from monthly surveys conducted by the Ifo Institute among approximately 9,000 companies spanning the sectors of industry, services, trade, and construction.
