German business refuted Scholz's words about the absence of deindustrialization in the FRG

Nicole Grünewald, president of the Cologne Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI), refuted German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's claim that the FRG is not experiencing deindustrialization, Focus magazine wrote on February 22.

"The fact that the current chancellor denies ongoing deindustrialization is a problem for our economy," said the president of the Cologne Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Grünewald cites statistics that she believes are indicative of deindustrialization in Germany.

"29% of companies operating internationally want to expand abroad. At the same time, 34% want to reduce their investments in Germany, which means that our companies are moving their investments abroad," she told Business Insider.

According to the magazine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a televised duel with Friedrich Merz on Sunday that the mood in the economy is bad but there is no deindustrialization. Grunewald, however, blames the economic stagnation primarily on the policies of the traffic light coalition.

"We need reliability. More than half of our companies now say they no longer have confidence in the policies. We have never had this before: the economy sees politics as a risk factor for Germany as a place to do business," she said.

Fiasco according to plan: Olaf Scholz's government faces a vote of no confidence

Germany faces snap elections to the Bundestag

Earlier, on February 5, the media reported about an attempt by the SPD leadership to dissuade Scholz to go to the polls. It was noted that party members have concerns that if Scholz is re-nominated, the SPD will not win early federal elections. However, the chancellor insisted on confirming his candidacy.

Early elections will be held in Germany on February 23.