Monday, 17 August 2026Europe · Analysis
Independent · Brussels & Berlin
Person
Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Alliance 90/The Greens
The February 23 vote follows the collapse of Olaf Scholz's traffic light government. Polls point to a CDU-led administration, but the shape of the next coalition depends on whether smaller parties clear the five percent threshold.
Spain, Portugal and Greece drive euro area growth while Germany records a second consecutive annual contraction, exposing a deepening north-south divide that economists say cannot be bridged by the periphery alone.
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