Germany Approves an Additional Budget That Includes a New Record Borrowing

An official said that the government of German Chancellor Angela Merkel approved a debt-financed supplementary budget of 60 billion euros, 71 billion dollars, which raises the new borrowing to a record level exceeding 240 billion euros this year.

The revised budget highlights Berlin’s willingness to continue huge borrowing-financed spending during the Covid-19 pandemic, as Europe’s largest economy suffers a third wave of coronavirus infections linked to a more contagious strain.

An official said that Finance Minister Olaf Schultz also proposed a draft budget for next year that includes a net new debt of 81.5 billion euros, which means that Parliament for the third year in a row suspends restrictions imposed by the constitution on borrowing.

The debt plans mean that Germany’s total borrowing due to the pandemic could exceed 450 billion euros from 2020 to 2022.