How do firms in Germany respond to international crises and geopolitical shifts? Are investments to adapt to climate change and in digitalisation planned? What short-term challenges are firms facing and what are their expectations regarding developments in interest rates, sales prices and wages?

Answers to these and similar questions about their situation, perceptions and expectations help the Bundesbank to fulfil its statutory tasks. For this reason, the Bundesbank surveys a representative sample of firms as part of a study. The survey and the questionnaire were designed and prepared by the Bundesbank’s Research Centre; forsa, a public opinion research firm, has been commissioned with conducting the survey. Answering the questions takes approximately 15 minutes. Given the dynamic situation, this information is collected on a monthly basis, with the participating firms being surveyed only once a quarter.

Responses to the questions are evaluated in effectively anonymised form only. The published results are fully anonymous and do not allow any inferences to be made about which firm has provided which data.