Germany and the Euro

West Germany- Economy (1980s)

• In the 1980s West Germany emerged as a leading economic power, along with Japan and the USA.
• West German international leadership became more prominent in the late 1980s.

• The government took an active part in the reconstruction of the economy, but never took complete control.
• In 1982 it owned about $25 billion worth of assets (railroads, oil companies, the largest national automobile producer (Volkswagen) and other firms).
• West Germany developed a mixed economy, in which the government took an active part in the development of the resources but a free enterprise system remained. 

• In the late 1980s the economy finally began to grow more rapidly.
• The growth rate for West German GDP rose to 3.7% in 1988 and 3.6% in 1989, the highest levels of the decade.
• The unemployment rate also fell to 7.6% in 1989, despite an influx of workers from abroad.