Press releases

SME Statistics, however, usually do not account for the entire dimensions of all foreign activities

24.06.2021. The number of exporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has fallen slightly in recent years (2012: 350,000 enterprises, 2019: 340,000 enterprises). The share of exporting SMEs…

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Transformation to a service economy continues steadily

In the pandemic year 2020, the number of start-ups in the liberal professions (-5.6%) and the commercial sector (-11.7%) decreased compared to 2019. In contrast, the number of start-ups in agriculture and forestry increased (+8.4%). Overall,…

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Increased number of insolvencies among larger companies indicates a crisis in the sector

In 2020, the construction industry was the most affected by insolvencies. Although demand for construction was generally high in the pandemic year, most insolvencies were registered in this particular sector,…

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Empowering companies now to start longer-term business development

In the past months of the pandemic, Mittelstand policy was primarily directed at mitigating the acute consequences for the self-employed and entrepreneurs to limit economic and social harm.

Professor Friederike Welter (IfM…

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Research, Business and Policy discussed current and necessary support measures for the future.

"Even if the acute problems of the Mittelstand currently predominate and an end to the pandemic is not yet in view, Mittelstand policy also keep the post-Corona period in mind. We should rather already be…

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The economic consequences for companies should be considered comprehensively

For more than a year, the Corona pandemic has posed a major challenge to Mittelstand businesses in Germany. However, companies are affected differently by the consequences of the pandemic: The majority of firms can operate…

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IfM Bonn for the first time investigated business closures in the run-up to planned takeovers in Germany

Business, where it is already planned at the beginning of the succession process that a family member will take over the business, are significantly less likely to be shut down than companies…

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Around 49,400 women founded businesses as their main occupation and 106,500 as sideline occupation.

In the pandemic year 2020, commercial start-ups of individual enterprises fell by around 15%. The decline was somewhat smaller among women than among male entrepreneurs. As a result, the share of…

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In the opinion of the IfM Bonn, regionally differing opening strategies could be considered – especially if the incidence of infection can be traced back to specific clusters. Due to Drittes Gesetz zum Schutz der Bevölkerung bei einer epidemischen Lage von nationaler Tragweite of November 2020,…

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Support measures at federal and state level lead to a decline in business start-ups

The Corona pandemic and its consequences for the economy and society have had different effects on business start-up activity in the various sectors of the economy: In the construction sector, for example, the…

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