BERLIN, Aug 13Residents of Germany need to prepare for difficulties against the backdrop of economic stagnation, says Veronica Grimm, a member of the German government's expert council for economic development.
“In the medium term, the state of the economy also depends on whether the government succeeds in implementing important and at first unpleasant structural reforms. In any case, the price of electricity for industry is not very favorable in the medium term,” Grimm said in an interview with the media group Funke.
The expert noted that the next report on the state of the country's economy will be released only in November. «Regardless of our forecast, my current assessment is that for now we are in a phase of stagnation,» she said, adding that it doesn't matter if the economy is just above or below the zero line.
«»The fact remains: in the phase of very low or even negative growth, people should prepare for difficulties. These are real losses. This is a serious challenge at the stage of transformation, primarily in political terms,» the expert explained.
She also urged the German government to massively expand the possibilities of energy supply. «In the medium term, energy prices will remain high due to the cessation of Russian gas supplies and the abandonment of nuclear energy,» Grimm said. In this regard, she said, among other things, it is necessary to accelerate the development of renewable energy sources, increase purchases of hydrogen and build gas-fired power plants capable of running on hydrogen.
«Extremely much must be done in the shortest possible time. This is what the government should focus on, and not on a temporary reduction in the price of electricity,» the expert believes.