Forecast – the economy will improve, but inflation will remain

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Oberbank general Franz Gasselsberger in the “Krone” interview: The economy is growing more than expected and interest rates are also rising. However, there is criticism of the government measures: “We have the highest subsidies in Europe, but not the greatest satisfaction!”

He is considered an old veteran of the financial world: Oberbank general Franz Gasselsberger has been on the command bridge for decades. Current findings in an interview with Krone’s deputy editor-in-chief, Georg Wailand: “The economy is better than predicted by the economic researchers, I have removed the word recession from my vocabulary since the beginning of the year. On the other hand, inflation remains high and interest rates continue to rise sharply.”

Question to the “Captain”: How will the journey continue? “Austria has provided the highest funding in Europe to fight the crisis, reassuring many, but differentiated support would have been more budget-friendly. But as it was, everything and everyone was supported with borrowed money – and yet there was no general satisfaction. You worked too much with the watering can.

“We are weak in the reforms”
For the state, this means a huge debt and burden. Gasselsberger: “We are weak in reforms, for example in the pension system. We have to inject 30 billion euros a year, that’s all income taxes. And if you also see that the rising interest rates for our government bonds amount to around ten billion euros in interest every year, it becomes clear how important reforms are!”

However, the financial sector in Austria is doing well again: Unicredit, Erste Group, Raiffeisen International all reported high profits, and Oberbank is no different: “We achieved one of our best results ever last year.”

The institutions are earning money again from both savings and loans and there are hardly any defaults.

Real estate hype over
However, all institutions have a weak point: real estate financing (private and commercial) has fallen by 50 percent (!) since August last year. Gasselsberger: “Not only the stricter tendering rules were to blame, but also that the real estate hype is over. But things may very well return to normal in a few months. The desire to own an apartment is unbroken.”

The fact that the economy is optimistic again is evidenced by the increased demand for leasing.

The Oberbank itself clearly remains on track for growth: it operates 180 branches, with the largest expansion in Germany, where there are already Oberbank branches in ten federal states: the Germans do and find us a welcome alternative.”

Gasselsberger’s blood pressure shoots up when it comes to the general staff shortage: “You have to give your own people opportunities for a satisfying job. After all, people want a sense of satisfaction in their work.” A co-determination model reinforces this job satisfaction with money and free shares, and Gasselsberger hopes that saving in shares will soon become generally more fiscally attractive.

Source: Krone

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