When I invested directly in Berlin last year a common critiscism was "The East is full of ghost towns, population is declining, the young have left, there is 30% unemployment'.

At the time I argued "but surely this is the fabled 'trough' all the bears say they dream of as the opportune time to invest, and also labour is supply rich so will tempt West German employers"

I read in the FT about Dresden this morning 'Dresden, Saxony's capital, has lower rates of unemployment than Cologne, its counterpart in the west'

AND 'German and international investors are drawn to Dresden's qualified and flexible workers, lower wages and its longer working hours than those in the west, as wellas its low rates of unionisation and vibrant high-tech scene'.

AND 'Saxony (in the East) recorded the highest GDP growth in Germany of 3.8% in the first half of 2006'


I also bought shares in UK German property companies.
All recent fund launches have been massively over subscribed.

Even Irish property developers are investing in Germany (William Ewart) as they flee thier own toppy markets