Europe talks up public spending to stave off economic slowdown, but not yet

The call from business leaders is also growing louder

European policy makers are talking up their readiness to step up public spending to stave off an economic slowdown. The catch is, the moment for turning words into action seems still far off. Nowhere is this debate felt more than in Germany. Europe’s largest economy shrank in the second quarter but politicians are still loathe to give up the country’s balanced budget policy.

“It’s a lively discussion, of course,” German Deputy Finance Minister Jorg Kukies said in a Bloomberg TV interview with Francine Lacqua from Cernobbio, Italy. Germany “has the power to react if and when needed. At the moment we