Skip next section Number of book retailers falls by nearly a quarter over five years
10/14/2025October 14, 2025
Number of book retailers falls by nearly a quarter over five years
The number of book retailers in Germany slumped by nearly 24% over five years, with just over 2,980 businesses operating in 2023, according to the Federal Statistical Office.
In 2018, there were about 3,930 bookstores. Destatis presented the figures ahead of the Frankfurt Book Fair, which runs from October 15 to 19.
Analysts attribute the decline to rising rents and staffing costs, as well as changing consumer habits. The number of employees in the sector also fell by 19% over the same period, from 28,000 in 2018 to 22,620 in 2023.
Despite the contraction, sales have risen 9% since 2018. Book retailers generated just under €4 billion in 2023, up from about €3.6 billion five years earlier.
Training in the book trade remains female-dominated. In 2024, nearly 490 people began apprenticeships as booksellers, down slightly from 500 in 2023. Women accounted for 87% of new trainees — the highest proportion in a decade.
https://p.dw.com/p/51wox
Skip next section Body of missing 8-year-old Fabian likely found
10/14/2025October 14, 2025
Body of missing 8-year-old Fabian likely found
Police searching for an eight-year-old boy who went missing from Güstrow south of Rostock, have found a child’s body in a nearby forest.
Authorities said the body is believed to be that of the missing boy Fabian, though a forensic examination is still needed to confirm his identity.
Local broadcaster Ostseewelle first reported the discovery.
https://p.dw.com/p/51xy3
Skip next section Germany’s inflation edges up to 2.4% in September
10/14/2025October 14, 2025
Germany’s inflation edges up to 2.4% in September
Germany’s inflation rate rose to 2.4% in September 2025, up from 2.2% in August and 2% in July and June, according to the country’s Federal Statistical Office, Destatis.
Consumer prices also increased by 0.2% compared with August.
“After declining inflation since the beginning of the year, the inflation rate has now risen for the second month in a row,” said Destatis President Ruth Brand. She noted that service prices continued to climb at an above-average pace, while falling energy prices had a smaller dampening effect than earlier in the year.
Energy prices were 0.7% lower in September than a year earlier, marking the fifth straight month of a slowing decline. The drop was smaller than in August, when energy prices were down 2.4% year-on-year.
Fuel prices rose 1.1% — the first annual increase since May 2024 — while household energy costs fell 1.9%.
New German government weighs hiking minimum wage
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/51xMf
Skip next section Few German workers fear job loss from AI, survey finds
10/14/2025October 14, 2025
Few German workers fear job loss from AI, survey finds
Only about 5% of employees in Germany are worried that artificial intelligence could threaten their jobs within the next five years, according to a new survey by the health insurer AOK’s Scientific Institute (WIdO).
Two-thirds of respondents said they were “not at all concerned,” while another 23% were “rather unconcerned” about AI’s impact on their job security.
The survey also revealed limited knowledge about AI. Even in companies where it is already in use, just under 40% of employees said they had received any related training. Nearly half of respondents said they “roughly” understood what AI means, while 47% believed they could explain it fairly well. Only 5% considered themselves experts.
WIdO director Helmut Schröder said he was surprised by the widespread lack of concern, noting that studies by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) suggest that roughly 38% of jobs in Germany involve tasks that could be largely automated. He warned that AI systems could also take over more complex professional roles.
According to the survey, 42% of respondents said AI is already being used in their workplace, while 8.5% reported concrete plans to introduce it and 15% said it was being discussed. Only 22% said AI was not yet an issue in their work environment, and just 12% believed it would never be relevant to their field.
The survey was conducted in April among 2,490 employees.
Can AI help with livestock farming?
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/51xYH
Skip next section Majority of Germans back reintroduction of military conscription
10/14/2025October 14, 2025
Majority of Germans back reintroduction of military conscription
Most Germans favor reinstating compulsory military service, according to a new Forsa poll for Germany’s Stern news magazine.
The survey found that 54% support mandatory service in the Bundeswehr, while 41% oppose it and 5% expressed no opinion.
Support is strongest among conservative voters, with 74% of CDU/CSU supporters in favor. Among the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), 58% back a return to conscription, while 80% of Left Party voters oppose it.
The poll revealed a clear generational divide: 61% of those aged 60 and older support conscription, compared to just 37% among 18- to 29-year-olds, who would be most directly affected.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Forsa has tracked fluctuating public opinion on the issue, but since March 2024, support for reinstating conscription has clearly prevailed. The draft was suspended, not abolished, in 2011.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius of the SPD has proposed a new military service law aimed at recruiting tens of thousands of new soldiers annually, initially on a voluntary basis. Mandatory service would be introduced only if recruitment goals are not met or if the security situation deteriorates.
Germany debates return to compulsory military service
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/51x6K
Skip next section Welcome to our coverage10/14/2025October 14, 2025
Welcome to our coverage
Guten Tag from DW’s newsroom in Bonn.
You join us as figures show that a large majority of Germans are not worried about artificial intelligence taking their jobs.
The survey also showed that there was limited knowledge about AI, with very few workers saying they understood it well.
Meanwhile, figures show that inflation remains stubbornly above target in Germany.
Follow DW for more news about this and other stories from Germany here in our blog.
Inside Germany’s grocery habits — Euromaxx
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/51wq7
