Schaeuble defends low deficit

German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble says he is tired of calls to sacrifice deficit reduction for economic growth, just as US Treasury secretary Jacob J Lew pressed Germany to boost domestic demand.

Speaking at a banking conference in Berlin a day before leaving for meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington, Schaeuble said growth is the strongest in countries where deficits are the lowest.

“I can’t stand these debates any longer that one has to choose between austerity policies and growth policies,” he said. “We always get these recommendations from economists — like the most recent analysis from the IMF that we have more leeway to spend.”