Germany's new growth model needs policy support to be sustainable

Germany is close to turning a page in its economic history - one in which domestic demand rather than export performance will be the key to its long-term success. For this to happen, wage earners will need to seize their best opportunity in a generation, while policymakers make use of low interest rates to boost public investment and improve incentives for private investment and labour supply. Germany should also play a key role in outlining post-crises reforms in the EU. The election in 2017 will be crucial for anchoring a new, more progressive direction for German and European economic policy, says Societe Generale.