Economics

Merkel Legacy Is a German Jobs Boom for Europe's Star Economy

  • The outgoing chancellor can’t take all the credit though
  • Challenges include floundering productivity, aging population
Angela MerkelPhotographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg
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Angela Merkel is quitting while she’s ahead from an economic perspective.

Her 13-year term as German Chancellor so far has seen unemployment tumble from sky-high levels to record lows, output overcome the deepest economic crisis since the Great Depression, and the country reaffirm its role as a global manufacturing powerhouse. In five charts and a map, we look at her economic track record, and what it says about the challenges ahead.