West Germany: Plagued by Plenty

Prosperous West Germany seems to be on its way to overtaking the U.S. as the world's leading exporter, but the prospect does not make Chancellor Ludwig Erhard very happy. In fact, he was downright grim when his economics ministry reported to him that Bonn's trade surplus for 1964's first two months was running at a staggering annual rate of $2.4 billion. Erhard sees the pile-up of export-earned foreign exchange as another spur to inflation, which is already getting a push from a huge in flux of foreign capital ($725 million in 1963) attracted by the high yields of German...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!