1st global welcome to the program europes biggest economy is running out of steam germanys latest growth figures fuel from service that the country could be on its way to a recession the economy contracted 0 point one percent in the recent quarter this after posting lackluster growth in the 1st 3 months of the year and not the end of last year slump has been attribute to a fall in sales of Machine Parts and cars to china uncertainty of bread and a difficult global trade environment should be found in the contract to give an exporter germany would officially be in a recession. Of all sectors its the hitherto invincible industrial sector thats begun to drag on germanys economy for years its been the driving force behind the recovery but no longer german Industrial Production in june 29th teen was 5. 2 percent down on june last year thats the largest reversal since the Global Financial crisis and recession 10 years ago. Exports of also long been a pillar of the economy also a thing of the past right now germanys exports in june 29th were shocking 8 percent lower than in june 28th. Industrial companies are dealing with a number of factors the trade war between the us and china is exerting a drag on the Global Economy fee is also surround brags that the u. K. s impending departure from the e. U. Germanys Energy Transition the switch to Sustainable Energy sources is still very much work in progress and adding to the countrys woes its Flagship Auto industry is struggling with homemade troubles they include the notorious diesel emissions scandal the conversion to electric drive systems and problems with digitalisation in general. All these issues are combining to weigh on Overall Economic output. And with the outlook not appearing too promising either it could well be that the e. U. Is number one economy is heading steadily towards recession. Lets get more on the story with. The chief economist at bank of germany he joins me now from frankfurt welcome to the program what does a 0 point one percent contraction of the economy tell us. It means that they were really in a state in asia because you know you take a step back and we see that actually since the last summer since the summer of 2018 the German Economy has been in almost the fact the state nation so this is i think the worst news that we could get its no reason to panic yet because we had a golden decade but this golden decade is clearly coming to an end its now more or less the question is how we go forward will we leave everything in the hands of donald trump and trade or will the German Government act and insert some fiscal stimulus now exports have been a huge drag on the German Economy in the last quarter and as the reasons for the slump are located outside of the country are they therefore harder to address obviously its extremely hard to address because this means that the it is the trade war it is the trade which has a direct impact through whatever whatever Car Manufacturers for example produce in the u. S. To export to china it is the chinese demand weakening and it is this global uncertainty which is feeding into the into the german industry but i think what what is even worse what we saw in recent months is that this resilience we have in the domestic economy strong consumption strong investment in Strong Services that this is also starting to falter and i think this makes the outlook even more passive mystic now speaking of a pessimistic outlook should germany enter into a recession meaning that g. D. P. Growth. Will also contract in the quarter that were in how much of a problem would that be. Depends on how big or how small it is i think that when we would be probably similar to what we saw in 20122000 certainly would be a mini recession its nothing yet compared to 2008 to 2009 but i think the problem is that we see this this is a recession or stagnation however you want to call this it was traits that the current growth model of the German Economy is running out so germany needs a new impulse there are structural need specially when it comes to digitalisation when it comes to the automotive sector when it comes to to infrastructure so i think this should be the time to really remake the German Economy to prepare for the for the next years otherwise we would probably end up in a kind of japanese style ongoing for reading with recession states and on that notion has been reluctant towards an economic stimulus package is he right in doing so well you could call this wide shot i think obviously she she should not go out and spread panic but i think it would always be easier to act now when the economy is still in a relatively good shape then wait another 6 or 12 months before the economy really has entered a recession because right now you could do you know really clear the grounds for a future Oriented Program in my view 2 pillars short an impulse maybe some some Corporate Tax cuts but then also an investment package really aimed at Climate Change and digitalisation because you just get chief economist that i n g back germany thank you for talking to dont. Now in a rare step to deescalate his ongoing trade war with china u. S. President on trump has backed off his temper 1st deadline for a 10 percent tariff remaining on remaining chinese imports he is delaying duties on phones laptops toys and other consumer goods stock markets gained in the aftermath of the decision is that investors hope that the delay in tears will make for better u. S. Holiday sales chinas economy showed further signs of strain in july as factory output fell to its lowest level in 17 years industrial output grew 4. 8 percent last month thats the weakest pace since 2002 analysts had forecast a 6 percent drop the data show how the trade war with the u. S. Is battering the worlds 2nd largest economy retail sales rose less than expected a sign of we couldnt weakening chinese demand among consumers. Now nearly a 3rd of gas stations in portugal are completely out of petrol or have run partially dry as fuel tanker drivers have been on strike for 2 days the drivers who are demanding better salaries and working conditions agreed to go back to work but their 2nd walkout this year has raised the specter of severe problems during portugals busy tourist season. On the 1st day of the strike the government designated it a National Emergency effectively making participation a criminal offense the Dangerous GoodsDrivers Union things that scandalous. Were going to attack we saw under the dictatorship where we fought for our rights with this democracy but the government is clearly ignoring our rights. Portugals Labor Ministry saw no alternative but to clamp down because even on the 1st day of the strike fuel supplies could no longer be guaranteed. That indeed the other men we had to issue are taught sound airports as well as other sectors which are essential to society were threatened if the is in the way and it was about ensuring calm and normality. Lisbons main market is a kind of social seismograph for the whole country it handles goods from portugals north and south Michael Browns is one of its main traders he says the 2nd strike day has been somewhat easier than the 1st. Customers twice as many goods on the 1st day because they were frightened there might be any fuel available on the 2nd and that precisely what the government hopes to prevent thats why soldiers are now driving consignments around the country to cushion the effects on the population. The 2nd day most of the gas stations here in lisbon are doing business as usual therefore many people were asking if it was really necessary to be clear threat to the nation already the 1st day of the strike for Prime Minister tony of course dave might have been quite convenient because he was able to show strength and authority less than 2 months ahead of the next elections. Reporting from lisbon there and now to some of the other Global Business stories making news media. Yes to form a 30000000000. 00 entertainment. Years of tie up towards. The movie studio paramount and t. V. Channels Comedy Central and m. T. V. And the merger will allow the new company to compete with streaming services the European Commission launched a formal antidumping investigation into Steel Products from china taiwan and indonesia on tuesday the inquiry follows a complaint by the European Association of users some of their peers outside the block a slot of europe with its. Illegal wildlife trade is worth billions of dollars some crimes like i was on poaching are well known others like the unlawful capture of birds for use in singing contests. Now authorities in colombia are cracking down on canary. In the wilds they sing to defend their territory or course a mate but as raids like this one in colombia have recently revealed birdsong is big business too with criminal seizing the creatures from the wild and forcing them to perform melodies and alcohol fuelled gambling events. On the part of the operation discovered that the birds were being subjected to a very high level of stress. That people were applauding and shouting at them. There was a lot of noise. They pretended that the bird who sang the most would take the prize that they were conducting a kind of business i. Think usenet places like this one where each of the beads was a prize and the person with the most beads at the end was the winner with. The raids on bird stealing gangs in colombia are just one example of an attempt to crack down on a thriving business. The United Nations estimates Global Wildlife crime to be worth up to 10000000000. 00 annually ranking it after Human Trafficking arms and drug dealing in terms of prophetess environmentalists say its high time for the illegal traders rather than the wild birds to end up behind bars. And that wraps up our show im chris colfer in for me on the entire team thanks for watching. Im not laughing at the germans because sometimes i am but mostly im laughing with the german think deep into the german culture of. Nudity and take this drama to you because its all that. No time rachel join me for me to get a bunch of course the world is getting more numerous. Forms could justify a lot of problems. Come the global 3000 talks with a team of british researchers who take an optimistic view. While it is not always a good point but its much much better than i was. Really getting better. A global 3000. 00 special mccool. Starts aug 19th on. Greetings from berlin and welcome to arts and culture well today well meet a composer who invites us to experience music as a physical presence Rebecca Saunders will be joining me in the studio and weve also got these stories lined up. In a new series on european landmarks where you start with one that encompasses the very essence of france and the city of light the eiffel tower in paris. And taking up some slack at the end of the show get ready for the amazing feats of a stony and slack planner. Well shes one of the most compelling composers working today london born Rebecca Saunders who lives and works here in berlin and her competent compositions turned the whisper the shimmer and funder of sounded to something almost tangible and she invites us to focus on minute creations of timber and of course the symbiotic relationship between musician and instrument challenging to play and fascinating to listen to