GERMANY

History:
1871: German Empire formed
1914 - 1918: World War I
1929: Global Depression
1939 - 1945: World War II
1949: Germany divided into East and West regions
1961: Construction of the Berlin Wall
1973: East and West Germany join the UN
1989: Fall of the Berlin Wall
1990: Germany joins the EU
2005: First female Chancellor, Angela Merkel elected
2008: Germany officially declares recession
2009 (Feb): Parliament signs $63 billion stimulus package
2009 (Aug): Germany comes out of recession
Demographics:
Population: 80.62 Million(2013)
Population growth rate: -0.061%
Birth rate: 8.21 births/1,000 population
Life expectancy: 79 years
2nd most populous European country
Median age (male): 42.6
Median age (female): 45.2
Age structure:
0 - 14 years: 13.7%
15 - 64 years: 66.1%
65 years and over: 20.3%
Population of capital city of Berlin: 3,440,441
Urbanization:
Urban population: 74% of population
Rate of urbanization: 0.1% annual rate of change
Total: 357,022 sq km
Land: 348,672 sq km
Water: 8,350 sq km
Located in central Europe
Area comparison: slightly smaller than Montana
Bordering countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Luxembourg,
Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland
Water: borders the Baltic Sea and the North Sea
Germany is made up of 16 different states
Baden-Wrttemberg, Bavaria, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hesse, Mecklenburg-
Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, Saxony,
Saxony-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringia





Geographical Location


Climate: temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, rainfall during summer and winter
Terrain: lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south
Natural hazards: flooding
Major cities: Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne

NATURAL RESOURCES:
Coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials,
timber, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 33.13%
permanent crops: 0.6%
other: 66.27%



GERMANYS TOP 10 EXPORTS:
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in German global
shipments during 2013. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in
terms of overall exports.
Machinery: $253,926,429,000 (17.5% of total exports)
Vehicles excluding trains and streetcars: $250,946,878,000 (17.3%)
Electronic equipment: $141,816,711,000 (9.8%)
Pharmaceutical products: $74,318,113,000 (5.1%)
Plastics: $67,990,424,000 (4.7%)
Optical, technical and medical apparatus: $66,469,145,000 (4.6%)
Aircraft, spacecraft and equipment: $46,315,038,000 (3.2%)
Mineral fuels including oil: $45,724,470,000 (3.1%)
Articles of iron or steel: $33,908,189,000 (2.3%)
Organic chemicals: $33,406,511,000 (2.3%)
IMPORTS:
India's exports to Germany amounted to
$7.8 billion or 0.7% of overall imports in 2013.
1. Organic chemicals: $741 million
2. Electronic equipment: $676.1 million
3. Machines, engines, pumps: $658.9 million
4. Knit or crochet clothing: $556.3 million
5. Clothing (not knit or crochet): $504.4 million
6. Leather, animal gut articles: $401.1 million
7. Footwear: $346.4 million
8. Iron or steel products: $326.9 million
9. Other textiles, worn clothing: $281 million
10. Pharmaceuticals: $263.4 million



INDUSTRY:
One of the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of:
Iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics,
food and beverages, shipbuilding, textiles
Industry and construction accounted for 29% of gross domestic product in 2013, and employed
29.7% of the workforce.

Major German Companies:
Volkswagen
Allianz
Daimler
Siemens
Metro
Deutsche Telekom
BMW
Mercedes Benz
Audi
T-Mobile
Nivea
Porsche
Merck
Adidas
ECONOMY:
Largest national economy in Europe and 5th largest in the world
Monetary system: monetary policy was transferred to the European Central Bank in 1999
Currency: Euro established in 1999
GDP: $3.635 trillion USD (2013)
GDP (PPP): $2.81 trillion (6th in the world)
GDP per capita: $34,100
GDP growth rate (2009): 2.5%
FDI: 503 billion EUR (2013)
Technology:
105 million mobile cellular phone users (8th in the world)
61.973 million internet users (6th in the world)
German companies represent 15.6% of research advanced goods worldwide, ranking 2nd in
the world (following US)
Education:
99% literacy rate among males and females
Approximately 4.4% of GDP invested in education
250 universities, 100 of which focus on applied sciences
95% of universities and higher education are public
School life expectancy: 15 years
Labor Force:
Labor force: 43.5 million
Labor force by occupation:
Agriculture: 2.4%
Industry: 29.7%
Services: 67.8%
Unemployment rate: 7.5% (2013)
Much higher unemployment rate in Eastern Germany than Western Germany
Average work week: 37.5 hours
Normal business hours: 9am - 5pm
Retail hours vary, limited hours on Sunday
Average wage: 27.9 EUR (Western Germany) and 17.4 EUR (Eastern Germany)
Typical annual leave: 20-30 working days
German Consumer:
The typical German consumer rejects the idea discounts shops and places value on quality
Emphasis on safety, quality, comfort and reliability
Political Structure:
Government type: federal republic
Chief of state: President Christian Wulff
Head of government: Chancellor Angela Merkel
Elections: president elected for a 5 year term (eligible for 2nd term)


Legal Structure:
Legal system: civil law
Value added tax: 19%
Value added tax for food: 7%
Corporate tax: 15%
Profit generated in Germany can be subject to corporate tax, solidarity surcharge, and trade
tax
Religion:
Religious freedom
Protestant (33%), Roman Catholic (33%), Muslim (4%), 108,000 members of Jewish
communities, and others
Culture:
Germans have a strong sense of regional pride
Reputation for being industrious, thrifty, and orderly
Germans usually express their thoughts and opinions in a direct way
Separation between private and public relations
Interest in academic credentials but not personal life
Formal communication and greetings
Business deal is usually mutually beneficial and the central focus is just the task.
Attention to be paid to targets and time schedules.
Appointments are to be taken before meeting someone
Decision making is a slow detailed process.
Correspondence should be in German
Business Environment:
Starting a business in Germany is ranked 88 out of 183 economies by The World Bank
To start a business in Germany:
It will take approximately 15 days
9 different procedures
4.8% of income per capita
German-American business groups:
German American Business Association
American-German Business Club
Germany-USA Career Center
Strengths
Increasing
consumer
consumption
Efficient and
educated
work force
Largest
European
economy
Weaknesses
High tax
rates
Slow
negotiations
Demanding
employees




SWOT Analysis:



Opportunities
Location
Tax
incentives
Introduction
into
European
market
Threats
Mature
market

Competition