The Governing Council today decided to keep the three key ECB interest rates unchanged. It is determined to ensure that inflation stabilises at the 2 % target in the medium term. The war in the Middle East has made the outlook significantly more uncertain, creating upside risks for inflation and downside risks for economic growth. 

Germany’s current account recorded a surplus of €17.1 billion in January 2026, slightly down on the previous month’s level. Although the surplus in the goods account increased, the surplus in invisible current transactions, which comprise services as well as primary and secondary income, declined slightly more sharply. 

Notes on methodology and links

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was conceived at the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944, and currently has 190 member countries. Germany joined the Fund in 1952. The overarching aim of the IMF is to promote economic policy cooperation and stability in the international monetary system. Its mandate also covers financial stability issues that have monetary implications.

“In a globally interconnected world, autonomy is an illusion,” Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel told the German “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” newspaper. But even so, Europe still needed to invest in certain areas in order to become more independent. Interviewed jointly with Martin Kocher, Governor of the Oesterreichische Nationalbank, they also spoke about the debt ratios of euro area countries, proposals for fiscal consolidation, and central bank independence.

on the topic of Corporate financial statements