Macro-financial risk
2026-04-26
12 min read
11 sources
Germany Under Merz: Fiscal Reset, Defense Buildout, Industrial Triage
The 500 billion euro Sondervermoegen, a softened debt brake, and a NATO 3.5 percent path reframe Germany's macro stance. The harder question is whether industrial Germany can be repaired in time.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz took office in May 2025 leading a CDU/CSU and SPD grand coalition committed to three simultaneous resets: a fiscal reset through a 500 billion euro special infrastructure fund and a constitutional carve out exempting defense spending above 1 percent of GDP from the Schuldenbremse, a defense reset toward the new N...