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The state of the German economy can be followed in real time: one trip on the motorway is enough to get an idea. Are the columns of trucks sliding into the right lane? Are all the rest areas occupied by tired truckers? This not only annoys all drivers, but is also a sure sign that German factories are booming.
Highways are the lifeblood of the German economy. They remain the most important transportation route for getting factory components and goods to customers. Researchers have developed an economic index from this. The Federal Statistical Office publishes the figures for this truck toll mileage index every day. In the crown crisis, it shows how much the consequences of the two closures differ. Politicians have rejected life in Germany twice, with very similar measures. In the economy, however, this triggered developments that could hardly be more different.
In the spring of 2020, truck traffic fell sharply, with nearly 20 percent fewer trucks on the roads. The first shutdown had caused panic. The factory lines were stopped. Some economists warned of the “mother of all recessions.” Never since World War II has the economy plummeted so much, minus 10 percent in the same quarter last year. Typically, hundreds of thousands of cars roll off the production line each month. In April, however, it was practically zero. More than six million people worked part-time jobs. For the first time since 2013, the federal government had to incur new debts, 130,000 million euros. The number of unemployed increased by more than 25 percent to 2.9 million.
