Germany today (Sat 7 Nov): A first woman president? Ilse Aigner is the favourite, industrial production up 0.7% in September, Berlin Freedom Week starts today, HSV beat Gladbach 3-1

Good morning! Here's your German news for Saturday, 7 November. Germany may be about to get its first woman president. And Monday marks 37 years since the Berlin Wall fell, so Berlin has a whole week of events starting today.

1. [Politics] A first woman Federal President? Ilse Aigner (CSU) is the favourite

• Reported on Fri 6 Nov — the CDU/CSU has settled on Ilse Aigner (CSU, 61) as its candidate to succeed President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, according to ZDF, Tagesspiegel and others. Aigner is currently President of the Bavarian state parliament
• Not official yet — the CDU leadership is due to decide on Monday. ZDF says Chancellor Merz and Aigner might announce it together
• SPD: "we'd support her" — Lars Klingbeil, leader of coalition partner SPD, said he would welcome and support her if the CDU officially nominates her
• She'd be Germany's first woman president — every Federal President so far has been a man
• The vote is on 30 January 2027 — the president is elected by the Federal Convention (Bundesversammlung): the members of the Bundestag plus the same number of delegates from the states. What it means for you: the president signs laws so they can take effect, and represents the country

Source: zdfheute.de · tagesspiegel.de · t-online.de (dpa)

2. [Economy] Industrial production up 0.7% in September — car factories are back up to speed

• Announced by the Federal Statistical Office on 6 Nov — production (manufacturing, construction and energy) rose 0.7% in September compared with August, and was 0.4% higher than a year earlier
• Cars +17.1% — a big jump after two weak months caused by production line changeovers and factory holidays. Pharmaceuticals were up 8.0%
• Machinery -6.5%, construction -2.6% — not every sector did well. Energy production also fell by 1.2%
• Third quarter overall: -0.4% — down on the second quarter. The August figure was also revised down from +2.0% to +1.0%
• What it means for you — after the rise in September orders we reported yesterday, production is up too. But construction keeps shrinking, which isn't a good sign yet for the supply of new homes

September 2026, adjusted for prices, season and working days · machinery (-6.5%) and construction (-2.6%) fell

Source: destatis.de · radioosnabrueck.de

3. [Society] 37 years since the fall of the Wall — Berlin Freedom Week starts today

• Sat 7 to Sat 14 Nov — the second Berlin Freedom Week brings around 170 events across the city: talks, readings, tours, films and more
• Mon 9 Nov is the 37th anniversary of the fall of the Wall — the week is under the patronage of Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner. This year it focuses especially on women who stood up to dictatorships, and on women's rights
• Highlights — the "Berlin Freedom Conference" at the Colosseum cinema in Prenzlauer Berg on Tue 10 Nov, a documentary day on Wed 11 Nov, and a Taiwanese night market at Markthalle Neun in Kreuzberg on Thu 12 Nov
• Free entry to the German Historical Museum on 9 Nov — with tours on the history of the Wall and the border, and on the 1938 pogrom against Jews. Sign up at the ticket desk on the day; up to 25 people per tour
• What it means for you — many events need a ticket or have limited places, so check the programme at berlin-freedom-week.com first. Why 9 November is such a special date is explained in today's life & culture post

Source: visitBerlin press release · nordkurier.de (dpa) · berlin.de · dhm.de

4. [Culture] A dictionary 100 years in the making — the Pomeranian dictionary wins the Fritz Reuter Prize today

• Awarded at Stavenhagen Castle on Sat 7 Nov — Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's Fritz Reuter Literature Prize (28th edition this year, €3,000) is given every year on 7 November, the birthday of the Low German writer Fritz Reuter
• This year: the "Pommersches Wörterbuch" — according to Nordkurier, the prize goes to Dr Matthias Vollmer, who led the work on the dictionary at the University of Greifswald
• Started in 1925, finished after about 100 years — the university announced in September that the dictionary is now complete: 2 volumes, more than 65,000 headwords and 53 maps of the Low German (Plattdeutsch) words of Pomerania
• What it means for you — in northern Germany you still hear Low German all the time, starting with "Moin!". If you live in Hamburg or further north, listen out for the local dialect (Mundart)

Source: nordkurier.de · visit-mv.com · forschung-und-lehre.de

5. [Arts] Photographer Herlinde Koelbl tells the stories of 40-plus people with cancer — Kunstmuseum Bonn

• Opens Sun 8 Nov at 11:30 — the photo exhibition "Fadenkreuze für das Leben" (Crosshairs for Life) opens at the Kunstmuseum Bonn and runs until 16 May 2027
• People living with cancer — portraits of and conversations with more than 40 people about illness, weakness and hope. The exhibition wants to take cancer out of the taboo zone
• From the artist's own experience — the targeting marks drawn on her body during radiotherapy in 2019/20 reminded Koelbl of her earlier work "Targets"
• The opening is free, no sign-up needed — the artist will speak herself. There's also a cancer information corner in the foyer
• What it means for you — a series of "Sundays of conversation" starts on 6 Dec. Check the museum's website for regular tickets and opening hours

Source: presseportal.de (Kunstmuseum Bonn) · tagesspiegel.de (dpa)

6. [Entertainment] Nico Santos gets his first German number-one album with "POV"

• Official German charts, published Fri 6 Nov — singer Nico Santos' new album "POV" went straight in at number one. It's his first number-one album
• His best before was number 2 — the album "Ride" reached number 2 and "Nico Santos" number 3
• Albums 2 and 3 — Swiss duo Yello with "Time Lab", followed by Queens of the Stone Age
• Christmas is already in the singles chart — Tate McRae's "Housewife" is number one for the third week, while "Last Christmas" is back at 33 and "All I Want For Christmas Is You" at 48
• What it means for you — German pop has easy lyrics, which makes it great for listening practice. Try Ski Aggu & Ericson's "Verschwommen" (number 2) too

Source: offiziellecharts.de · smago.de · eventim.de

7. [Sports] HSV beat Gladbach 3-1 — with two long-range stunners

• Fri 6 Nov, first game of Bundesliga matchday 9 — Hamburger SV beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 3-1 at home
• The goals — Miro Muheim from about 30 metres (11'), Joe Scally's equaliser (44'), Shafiq Nandja's first Bundesliga goal (60') and Albert Grønbæk from more than 25 metres (70')
• The table — HSV are eighth on 12 points, Gladbach stay bottom (18th) on 4
• Today at 15:30 — Mainz v Bayern, Dortmund v Elversberg, Leipzig v Augsburg and Paderborn v Frankfurt; Stuttgart v Bremen at 18:30. On Sunday at 15:30 it's the "Rhine derby" Cologne v Leverkusen
• The title race — Bayern and Dortmund are level on 18 points, with Freiburg on 16. After this matchday there's an international break

Source: bundesliga.com · hsv.de · hessenschau.de

Weather

City	Sun 8 Nov	Mon 9 Nov	Tue 10 Nov
Berlin	☀️ 7° / -1° mostly sunny	🌤️ 7° / 0° sunny spells	⛅ 5° / 0° mostly cloudy
Hamburg	🌦️ 7° / 2° cloudy, light showers	⛅ 9° / 4° some cloud	☁️ 4° / 1° cloudy
Munich	⛅ 8° / 3° mostly cloudy	⛅ 9° / 1° mostly cloudy	☁️ 9° / 3° cloudy
Cologne	🌤️ 11° / 6° sunny spells	🌤️ 10° / 1° sunny spells	⛅ 6° / 0° mostly cloudy
Frankfurt	⛅ 10° / 3° mostly cloudy	🌤️ 10° / 2° sunny spells	🌤️ 9° / 3° sunny spells

Tip: Mostly dry and chilly. In Berlin temperatures drop below zero early on Sunday morning, so watch out for frost and slippery paths; on Tuesday morning there may be fog. Take an umbrella in Hamburg on Sunday. And if you're going to the Wall memorial events on Monday evening, bring a scarf and gloves. (Forecast: wetter.com; Berlin checked with wetter.de and wetter.net)

German from today's news

Word	Meaning	Example from the news
die Bundesversammlung	Federal Convention (elects the president)	Die Bundesversammlung wählt den Bundespräsidenten.
das Staatsoberhaupt	head of state	Zum ersten Mal könnte eine Frau Staatsoberhaupt werden.
der Vormonat	previous month	Die Produktion ist im Vergleich zum Vormonat gestiegen.
der Mauerfall	fall of the Berlin Wall	Am Montag jährt sich der Mauerfall zum 37. Mal.
das Wörterbuch	dictionary	Das Wörterbuch hat zwei Bände.
die Ausstellung	exhibition	Die Ausstellung läuft bis Mai.

Watch out for frost on weekend mornings — Schönes Wochenende! 🇩🇪