Investment Environment
Biggest Market at the Heart of Europe
Germany is the largest market in Europe. It constitutes 25 percent of Europe's GDP (EU-27) and is home to 19 percent of the total European Union (EU) population.
The German economy is both highly industrialized and diversified – with equal focus placed on services and production.
Key Driver: The Manufacturing Industry
Germany accounts for almost 10 percent of Europe's manufacturing companies. They generate 29 percent of the EU's gross value added in the manufacturing sector alone. In fact, they represent more than one fifth of all of Germany's value added – one of the highest shares in Europe. Increasingly more international companies are placing their faith in Germany as an essential location for production sites. In doing so, they benefit from the country's excellent business framework and superior productivity rates.
Economic Backbone: Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Exports are driven by Germany’s backbone of highly innovative SMEs. They constitute more than 99.2 percent of all companies and employ 54 percent of all employees in Germany. Many of these SMEs are world market leaders in their respective niche segments. Together with internationally leading companies - such as Bayer, BASF, Daimler, Volkswagen, and Siemens to name but a few - they make up Germany’s manufacturing industrial base.
| Total | SMEs | SME-Share | |
| Number of Companies * | 3.44 m | 3.41 m | 99.2% |
| Turnover of Companies * | EUR 9,775 bn | EUR 2,664 bn | 27.3% |
| Employed * | 35.65 m | 19.12 m | 53.6 % |
| Net Value-Added ** | 55.7 % |
All figures relate to the private sector (commercial business economy and the liberal professions without public sector, NACE Rev. 2 Codes A-N,P-S). Exceptions are marked.
* Figures provided by the business register (NACE Rev. 2 Codes B-N,P-S). Differentiation of SMEs by number of employees and turnover
** Estimates by the IfM Bonn. Basic data: turnover tax statistics (VAT). Differentiation of SMEs by turnover
