AmCham business barometer

UScompanies operating from Germany said that throughout 2011 Europe's biggest economy remained a reliable and stable location for entrepreneurial activities, although revenues did not rise as fast as in the previous year.

According to the latest business barometer by the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany, the 274 US companies polled stressed they particularly appreciated the country's highly skilled employees, the size of the German market and the superior infrastructure on the ground.

"Germany is the most important market in Europe," said AmCham President Fred Irwin in a statement in Berlin. "But if we look to the future, we see a number of risks that could affect US companies in Germany."

Among the risks cited were Germany's restrictive handling of the ongoing debt crisis in the eurozone and what Americans felt was the country's excessive bureaucracy.

Emerging markets a threat?

American firms remain optimistic about their 2012 business prospects in Germany, with 81 percent of respondents expecting higher revenues. But the general understanding was that the government in Berlin needed to do more to attract foreign investment.

"Some US companies note the lack of a future vision in Germany," said Martin Wittig, an expert with Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. "They see that the desire to try new things and the readiness to take risks can sometimes be lacking."

The American Chamber of Commerce in Germany pointed out that new growth regions were becoming ever more important to US firms.

"The global division of labor is shifting," said AmCham President Fred Irwin. "Regions such as China or India can already be considered competitors of Germany in terms of investment by US companies," Irwin added.

hg/sgb (Reuters, dapd)