Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann has spoken out in favour of strengthening the forces of growth and boosting productivity in Europe. However, it is up to economic policymakers to make this happen, he said during a speech in Berlin.

How can I spot counterfeit money? How did Germany’s gold reserves come into being? Interesting expert lectures, contests with wonderful prizes on offer and activities for children: the Bundesbank’s stand at the Frankfurt Book Fair had much to offer to visitors.

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann does not believe that the uncertainty generated by trade disputes has thus far had any lasting impact on the global economy. Speaking on the sidelines of the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund in Bali, he said that the slight slowdown in growth, especially that observed in European countries, is probably due to the normalisation of expansion rather than a consequence of the trade conflict.

The international Central Banks and Supervisors Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) has published its first progress report to coincide with the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

The Bundesbank's TARGET2 balance has again increased considerably since the beginning of 2015 and currently amounts to around €950 billion. This development is first and foremost linked to the extensive asset purchases by the Eurosystem central banks

The European Central Bank and the national central banks of the Eurosystem began rolling out a second series of euro banknotes in May 2013. The last two denominations – the new €100 and €200 banknotes – will start circulating on 28 May 2019.

The Bundesbank’s website has a new editing system. The new platform enables the Bundesbank to structure its website content more quickly and flexibly and better address the needs of its users. Find out what is new here. 

The German economy made a weak start to the third quarter following fairly robust growth in the spring. According to the Bundesbank’s latest Monthly Report, this was mainly due to a substantial fall in production by car manufacturers. However, the Monthly Report points out that the German economic upswing is essentially intact.

The protracted period of low interest rates continued to take its toll on German banks’ profits last year, as the Bundesbank’s latest Monthly Report reveals in an analysis of the annual financial statements of German banks. Driven by a considerable decline in net interest income, aggregate operating income for all German banks fell by 3.8% to €123.1 billion.

Digital payments are on the rise in Germany. In 2017, more than 21 billion cashless payments were made in Germany. There was an especially large increase in the number of card payments.