Berlin, July 3 -- In a major bipartisan effort to rescue Europe's largest economy from financial stagnation, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced on Thursday that his coalition government has agreed on a sweeping "catalog of significant reforms" aimed at boosting competitiveness, cutting corporate bureaucracy, and providing EUR10 billion ($11.4 billion) in annual income tax relief.

According to a report by Deutsche Welle (DW), the compromise package was hammered out during intensive negotiations in Berlin between Merz's conservative CDU/CSU bloc and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD).

"We are providing relief to employees and businesses by cutting taxes and reducing bureaucracy. We have now completed our first year of reform. ...