Economy in the first half of the year
Tesla is helping Brandenburg to the top of all countries
September 22, 2023, 4:12 p.m
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The German economy is shrinking in the first half of the year. But the development varies considerably in the individual countries. The car manufacturer Tesla is proving to be a driving force for Brandenburg. In Rhineland-Palatinate, however, the easing of tensions regarding Corona is having a negative impact on GDP.
Thanks to tailwind from the car manufacturer Tesla, Brandenburg achieved by far the greatest economic growth nationwide in the first half of the year. From January to the end of June, the gross domestic product (GDP) in the eastern German state rose by six percent within a year, as the state statistics office announced. “Vehicle construction has given the economy a big boost,” said statistics expert Benjamin Gampfer. “That is the main driver why Brandenburg is so much above the national average.” Hamburg achieved the second largest GDP increase with 1.7 percent, ahead of Lower Saxony with 0.9 percent.
Rhineland-Palatinate came last – due to weak industry – with a decline of 5.4 percent. The State Statistical Office attributed the above-average decline there to a considerable extent to individual sectors “that benefited from the development and production of a vaccine against the coronavirus in 2021”. The Mainz-based pharmaceutical company Biontech had developed a vaccine against Covid-19 and thereby achieved billions in sales growth, which at the time had an impact on the economic performance of the entire state. As expected, sales at Biontech have now fallen again because less vaccine has been sold recently.
The statisticians reported the second worst economic development for Saxony-Anhalt at minus 3.2 percent. Nationwide, GDP shrank by 0.3 percent. Many experts expect something similar for 2023 as a whole.
A value chain has been established around Tesla
The US electric car manufacturer Tesla has a large factory in Grünheide, Brandenburg, near Berlin. “Yes, Tesla should play a role in Brandenburg,” said an economist. As early as 2022, gross value added in the manufacturing sector in Brandenburg will have increased by more than 13 percent.
The key driver of growth is the industry’s investments in electromobility, emphasized deputy managing director Alexander Schirp from the Berlin-Brandenburg business associations (UVB). “It’s not just Tesla that needs to be mentioned here.” Many suppliers have settled throughout Brandenburg and formed a value chain around this new industry. “A growth core is being created here that will bring a boost and new prosperity to the entire region.”
According to preliminary data from the working group “National accounts of the countries“The economic output shrank in nine federal states, stagnated in one, and the gross domestic product (GDP), adjusted for prices, increased in six states compared to the same period last year.