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Young companies are particularly hard hit by the coronavirus crisis, since firms that have not been in the market for a long time are less able to cushion the effects of the crisis. Especially innovative high-tech firms face a great number of challenges. As these start-up companies create knowledge and develop new technologies, it would be very damaging for the German economy if they do not survive the crisis, explains ZEW economist Jürgen Egeln. In the latest episode of the #ZEWPodcast he talks about how young and innovative companies are suffering from the current crisis and what support measures they need. While this editions was published in German, there are plans to produce English editions of the podcast as well.

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The German Real Estate Financing Index (DIFI) of ZEW Mannheim and JLL rises again, but remains in negative territory at minus 36 points. After a slight decline in the sentiment indicator at the beginning of the year (by minus 3.7 points) to minus 18.9 points, and a plunge of 37.8 points in the second quarter to an index level of minus 56.7 points, the DIFI has now improved by more than 20 points in the third quarter compared to the previous quarter. At present, however, the indicator continues to remain below the values registered since the the survey began in 2011.

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Economics has now also come to the schools of North Rhine-Westphalia. Starting in the school year 2020/21, economics is to become a mandatory subject in all secondary schools in this state – North Rhine-Westphalia is taking the step that Baden-Württemberg took four years ago.

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The German Federal Cabinet has adopted a draft law for the introduction of a digital pension platform. An information portal will be set up under the German Pension Authority (Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund) in order to cover all three pillars of old-age provision, namely statutory, occupational, and private. The portal should be able to show how much money you have saved and what monthly pension payments you can expect at retirement. In this interview, ZEW economist Professor Tabea Bucher-Koenen talks about why a digital pension platform is so important.

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Since the coronavirus-related shutdown in spring, companies and employees in Germany have made extensive use of remote working. In the digital event #ZEWlive, Professor Irene Bertschek, head of the ZEW Research Department “Digital Economy”, and Luka Mucic, CFO of SAP SE, discussed how the experience gained during the coronavirus crisis could be of benefit in the long term. This edition of the #ZEWlive digital event series focused on “COVID-19 and the Digital Economy: The Crisis as an Opportunity?”. The event was moderated by the journalist Elif Şenel and attracted about 150 spectators, who could participate in the discussion via chat.

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The German Federal Cabinet plans to introduce a digital pension platform, having already adopted a draft law to this end. An information portal will be set up under the German Pension Authority (Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund) in order to cover all three pillars of old-age provision, namely statutory, occupational, and private. The portal should be able to show how much money you have saved and what monthly pension payments you can expect at retirement. In the latest episode of the #ZEWPodcast, ZEW economist Professor Tabea Bucher-Koenen talks about why a digital pension platform is important and how knowledge about financial topics affects saving for old age. While the first three editions were published in German, there are plans to produce English editions of the podcast as well.

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The labour market was particularly hard hit by the coronavirus crisis. As a result of the pandemic, there has been a shift away from existing practices and the usual processes ­– which also applies to the area of human resources management. ZEW Mannheim was able to quickly adapt to these new circumstances and successfully continue its staff planning process. Over the past months, the HR department of ZEW held a total of 77 interviews and hired 14 new employees as well as an apprentice. “While there is a great deal of uncertainty in the labour market and although we have had to find new ways to manage the application process, we were able to fill our vacancies in the research departments as planned,” says Katharina Pakebusch, head of the HR department at ZEW, summarising the situation.

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The European Commission’s ban of the planned merger of the Siemens and Alstom train divisions in May 2019 put the issue on the front page: Is the European internal market well equipped to adequately deal with the challenges posed by the China’s economy and Chinese companies, such as the railway giant China Railway?

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At the beginning of August, Sebastian Rausch joined ZEW as the head of the research department of Environmental and Resource Economics, Environmental Management. Following positions at MIT and ETH Zurich, he accepted the post at ZEW along with a professorship in environmental and energy economics at Heidelberg University.

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The research award “Zukunft der Arbeitswelt” (“The Future of the Working World”) will be conferred for the eighth time by the Volksbank Weinheim Foundation in cooperation with ZEW. With the award, the Volksbank Weinheim Stiftung and ZEW aim to honour young economists from the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region. The prizes will be awarded to the best doctoral thesis, endowed with 3,000 euros, and the best master’s thesis, endowed with 2,000 euros. The recipients will have the opportunity to complete a research stay at ZEW. The deadline for submissions is 31 October 2020.

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