Germany news: Most voters expect Merz to leave office early

Key Points:

• A YouGov poll reveals 54% of Germans expect Chancellor Friedrich Merz to leave office before the 2029 federal election, with many perceiving a decline in his authority within the CDU party.
• Merz visited western Germany's Hürtgenwald region, recently devastated by wildfires, attributing the fires to climate change and thanking firefighters, though he faced criticism for his government's climate policies.
• Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume warned of a major industry crisis prompting significant cost-cutting and restructuring, potentially risking up to 50,000 jobs and multiple plant closures.
• German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil called for an EU-wide windfall tax on oil company profits amid rising energy prices, urging the European Union to address excessive profits made during the Middle East crisis.
• Germany's Labor Ministry reported a 23.6% pay gap between German and foreign full-time workers in 2025, highlighting disparities linked to education and employment sectors, while opposition parties debate immigration policy impacts.