The risk the recovery turns out to be a flash in the pan is enormous.

The talks on forming a grand coalition are going back and forth and are unlikely to lead to a modernization of the German economy.

Germany, more than almost any other country, is benefiting from a world economy that's expanding robustly for a third year. We are and remain the winners from globalization.

We need a change in economic policy and the FDP is most likely to deliver that change, that's why we want the FDP to get as many votes as possible. A grand coalition is the wrong answer to the problems we're facing.

I expect two interest-rate increases of 25 basis points each this year.

With this, Germany will once again be world champion in exports, and foreign trade will again make a substantial contribution to the economy.