Germany's struggling coalition government strives to bridge differences

Party leaders in German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's struggling coalition pledged on Tuesday to try to bridge differences over tax, welfare and health reforms after weeks of wrangling that have cast a shadow over the government's future.



As the first anniversary of Merz's appointment as chancellor approaches on Wednesday, his approval ratings and support for his conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) have sunk to record lows.



"There's no point in trying to get around it: trust in politics has declined," finance minister and SPD leader Lars Klingbeil told reporters. "The dispute, and particularly the heated debate of recent weeks, has also done us harm as a coalition and as a government."



After two years of recession, Germany's economy returned to growth at the end of last year but the fragile recovery risks being snuffed out by an energy shock from the war with Iran and new U.S. tariffs targeting carmakers that are already struggling with stifling competition from China.