In a move designed to kick-start the nation's economy which has been crippled by the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, Germany's coalition government has agreed to a 130 billion Euro (about 147 billion United States dollars) fiscal stimulus package. Analysts predict that German's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will shrink about 6.3% this year, marking the nation's worst recession in 70 years.
The stimulus package will include the temporary reduction the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 19% to 16% from July 1st to December 31st, 2020, provide each family with a one-time 300 Euros (about 340 USD) per child payment, double the rebate to encourage consumers to purchase electric vehicles, and provide help to businesses in the hardest-hit sectors. Restaurants, hotels, and event management companies are eligible to receive a reimbursement of up to 80% of their fixed operating costs if their revenues have dropped by over 70% compared to 2019.
As of now, Germany's Federal Ministry of Health has reported over 185,000 confirmed cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus alongside 8,736 Covid-19-related deaths. About 168,000 people have recovered so far.
Note: All images were retrieved from the public domain, and do not require attribution or citation for commercial use. The statistics and numbers regarding Covid-19 coronavirus were retrieved from the website of German's Federal Ministry of Health (https://www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/) and translated through Google Translate.
