BERLIN (Reuters) – The German government plans a 40 billion euro rescue package for small businesses and the self-employed to tide them through the collapse in demand brought on by the coronavirus epidemic, Der Spiegel magazine reported on Thursday.
The “Solidarity Fund” represents a definitive break from Germany’s long-standing no-new-debts policy, since it will be structured as a government-backed vehicle with the power to borrow at the very low rates available to the German government.
There will be a total of 10 billion euros in direct grants available to small businesses, and a further 30 billion euros available in the form of loans.
(Reporting by Thomas Escritt, editing by Scot W. Stevenson)
