German American Business Outlook 2017

What are German American Business thinking about the current business conditions in the United States? And what are they expecting for 2017?

With the results of last year's presidential election in mind, the German American Chambers of Commerce, the Representative of German Industry and Trade, and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants conducted a survey among 1900 headquarters of German companies in the United States. Their findings were summed up in the German American Business Outlook 2017.

In terms of political development, 28% of the consulted businesses are expecting a negative impact, while 30% expect that the newly elected U.S. Administration’s economic policies will benefit their U.S. Business. 40% expect no impact at all. The good news is also that approximately 85% of participating businesses are planning to expand their workforce and hire further employees in 2017 - provided that they can find enough skilled workers. 69% percent of businesses encountered difficulties attracting skilled labor in 2016, with Manufacturing and Engineering being the most competitive sectors in that regard.

35% of companies plan to invest in IT & big data in 2017, and with 28% investment in Manufacturing continues to be positive as well.

Interestingly enough, most companies are more optimistic about their own business growth outlook than about the U.S. economy as a whole. After all, driven by customer demand, the U.S. market remains a key strategic focus for many German companies. For more information on the survey and a presentation of further results please see here: http://www.ahk-usa.com/gabo/