Sectors and Resources

Megatrends such as decarbonisation, digitalisation and demographics, as well as signs of deglobalisation, could cause structural supply bottlenecks in the 2020s. In this report, we look at commodities such as copper, cobalt, nickel or lithium, for which global demand is likely to rise faster than supply, not least due to the energy transition. The availability of labour is also increasingly becoming a scarcity factor. Due to supply bottlenecks, potential growth in Germany could be closer to the 0.5% than the 1% mark in the future. [more]

Germany is a car-loving country. With a density of 578 cars per 1,000 inhabitants, more than one in two people in Germany owns a car (including children and the very elderly). The number of cars has risen steadily in recent years and shows that - despite the climate debate, congested inner cities and the supposedly car-critical Generation Z - there seems to be no car fatigue in Germany. [more]

Germany’s growth is under pressure from renewed cyclical and structural headwinds. In this edition of Focus Germany we introduce our new Nowcast Model for German GDP, predicting that the German economy should have expanded in Q2, but that risks for activity in H2 are increasing. We take the summer break in Berlin as an opportunity for a midterm review of the traffic-light coalition’s work. In a historic flashback we revisit the challenges Germany was facing when the Economist called it the sick man of the euro and which policy measures transformed the country into an Economic superstar a decade later. We find interesting parallels to today’s situation. [more]

In this report, we analyze the recent developments in the market share of electric cars in important car markets (Europe, USA, China) and the role of German manufacturers or group brands in this market segment. The market share of German OEMs in the field of e-mobility varies in the major automotive markets. In Europe, their market share for electric cars is currently slightly below that for all new passenger car registrations. In the US, German manufacturers have a larger share of the electric car market than in the overall market. In China, however, German manufacturers are noticeably behind domestic suppliers and Tesla. In all markets, we expect competition in the field of e-mobility to continue to increase. [more]

In the second edition of our Energy Transition Monitor we disentangle the drivers of lower economy-wide energy consumption into cyclical (winter-recession) and structural (loss of production capacities, energy-efficiency measures) factors. Moreover, we take a look at the shift in primary energy sources – from gas towards renewables and coal and why we are (finally) seeing a higher speed of solar PV build-out. We also provide an update of our gas supply-demand model for the upcoming winter. Finally, we summarize current policy action aimed at boosting domestic energy capacity (solar and wind) and improve the overall economy’s energy efficiency, both at the EU and national level. Our earlier thematic analysis on German gas supply and Germany's energy transition includes: "Energy Transition Monitor #1 - what, when and how", "Costs of electricity generation: system costs matter" and "EU Green Deal Industrial Plan - status update and how to fund it". [more]

Is green hydrogen a cure-all for the energy crisis? Not in the short-term, says Eric Heymann, Senior Economist for sectors, technology and resources at Deutsche Bank Research. The medium to long-term outlook is brighter, though. [more]

Electric heat pumps are becoming increasingly popular with German homebuilders. In 2022, they already supplied the primary heating energy in more than half of all homes in new buildings. In the 1st quarter of 2023, this share even rose to 55%. Thus, heat pumps have taken over the market leadership in a short time. An important reason for the rapid growth of their market share is government subsidies, which can account for up to 40% of the total cost. [more]

With Q1 GDP growth revised to -0.3% we now expect annual GDP to shrink by 0.3% in 2023. With the expected US recession weighing on German economic momentum towards year end we have cut our annual forecast for GDP growth in 2024 to 0.5% from 1.0%. Meanwhile, the energy transition policy is putting strains on government cohesion, as can be seen from the failure to agree on a piece of climate legislation this week. Spending pressures and debt-brake limits add to tensions. Still, none of the three ruling parties has an incentive to trigger early elections. [more]

The costs of electricity generation of different energy sources are often debated. Often, however, no distinction is made as to which specific costs are meant. While renewable energies have marginal costs close to zero and very competitive levelized costs of electricity, a high and increasing share of weather-dependent renewables leads to system costs. They result, for example, from the provision of back-up power plants and the falling average capacity utilization of all existing power plants. We discuss the different types of costs of power generation and note that investments in renewables are easier to realize than the construction of new back-up power plants. [more]

In the first edition of our Energy Transition Monitor, we take stock of the current speed of renewables rollout, e-car uptake, heat-pump installations, and energy infrastructure build-up (e.g., regarding hydrogen) in Germany. We then analyse existing bottlenecks for reaching envisaged targets for 2030. Finally, we provide an update of current policy action aimed at mitigating those bottlenecks, both at the EU and national level, and potential implications of these policy measures on investment spending (private and public). [more]