Ever since she became the managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last July, Christine Lagarde, 55, has been lamenting the state of the world economy.
The Frenchwoman recently said that the outlook for the global economy was "quite gloomy" and that if the international community failed to act decisively to halt the downward trend it could lead to a great depression such as the one in the early 1930s. "There is no economy in the world … that will be immune to the crisis," she said.
That is true. Nevertheless, there are countries that are doing better than others despite all the current global difficulties -- and this includes Germany, the core of the ailing euro zone, which Lagarde has pointed to as the cause of the current problems.
Most leading indicators and economic statistics in Germany point toward an improvement for the coming year. Wages and salaries are expected to rise in 2012, as is the number of jobs. Exports are predicted to continue to grow along with domestic demand.
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