IfM Bonn News

The number of new freelance businesses in Germany has risen from around 95,000 in 2024 to just over 111,000 in 2025. Berlin registered the highest number of new freelance businesses – followed by Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Leipzig, Frankfurt and Düsseldorf.

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The number of importing companies located in Germany rose in 2024 compared with 2023 (851,000 companies): Around 873,000 companies imported raw materials and goods. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) accounted for the vast majority of importers, at 98.3 per cent.

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The Entrepreneurship Division of the Academy of Management honoured Prof. Dr Dr h.c. Friederike Welter with the 2026 Dedication to Entrepreneurship Award last week at the Academy of Management’s annual conference in Philadelphia.

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Bonn, 04.08.2026. Nachdem sich die Kennzahlen für Umsatz und Gewinn bei den kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen (KMU) zu Beginn des Jahres 2026 verschlechtert hatten, zeigte sich im zweiten Quartal dieses Jahres sowohl in Deutschland als auch im Euroraum wieder eine deutliche Verbesserung bei Umsatz …

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What role do free markets play in the social market economy? Prof. Dr Dr h.c. Friederike Welter and Gitta Connemann, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and the Federal Government Commissioner for the Mittelstand Enterprises, discussed this question in mid-July at a debate organised by the Bonn …

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Many (smaller) companies are still reluctant to make use of public innovation funding. According to a literature review by Dr Siegrun Brink, this is less due to the funding on offer and more to the differing structural and procedural conditions at the level of the companies and the funding …

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The members of the Enquete Commission on "Reviewing the COVID-19 Pandemic and Lessons for Future Pandemic Events" gathered information in early July on the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the effectiveness of the support measures for various sectors in the Bundestag.

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How has self-employment changed since 1945? And how has been the socio-demographic composition of the self-employed developed?

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The number of apprentices in the commercial sector and the liberal professions has been rising steadily for the past four years. At the end of December 2025, around 1.53 million (young) workers were in apprenticeship schemes.

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The highest number of new business registrations in 2025 was recorded in the Munich district. It was followed by the city of Leverkusen – last year's top-ranked region – the Teltow-Fläming district, and the independent cities of Baden-Baden and Offenbach am Main. These are the findings of the latest …

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"Sustainability without innovation requires compromise, whilst sustainability with innovation leads to growth and competitiveness.

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"Water shortages in Germany are not primarily a problem of quantity, but rather – in the face of increasing climate change – a problem of management, distribution and governance," explained Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Friederike Welter early July during the 19th Bonn Academic Summer.

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Is “Made in Germany” still a brand? How can Germany’s position as an economic hub be restored?

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Employees are protected by statutory maternity leave. Those who are self-employed are not. The result: Approximately 27,000 self-employed women in Germany face financial hardship every year just because they are pregnant and run their own businesses.

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Despite the ongoing geopolitical challenges of recent years, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) generated approximately € 2.8 trillion in 2024, according to the recent available data.

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