Pole Position for Saxony-Anhalt in 2009 German State Ranking

MAGDEBURG, Germany, December 9 - Saxony-Anhalt is the surprise winner of the 2009 Federal State Rankings.
In the scientific study by the Initiative for New Social Market Economy
(INSM) and the WirtschaftsWoche magazine, experts evaluate the best places to
work, live, and invest in Germany. Saxony-Anhalt has taken 1st place in the
dynamic comparison of all 16 Federal States.

Numerically, Saxony-Anhalt has profited particularly strongly
from the recent years of recovery between 2006 and 2008. No other state has
seen such a strong increase in productivity and tax revenue. Tax revenue in
the state, which is an important indicator of economic performance, rose by
72.2 percent - more than double the national average.

The gross domestic product of Saxony-Anhalt recorded an
increase of 7.7 percent - the second highest, after Baden-Wurttemberg. That
also had positive consequences for the employment market. Unemployment levels
sank by 6.2 percent (3.9 percent nationally). Considered dynamically, this
was also the best result.

"Companies in the field of renewable energy - for example,
ENERCON Magdeburg - and solar companies in the so-called Bitterfeld Solar
Valley are the force behind the economic miracle in Saxony-Anhalt", explains
INSM Project Manager Jan Loleit.

"I couldn't have wished for a nicer Christmas present for
Saxony-Anhalt", Dr. Reiner Haseloff, Minister for Economy and Employment,
said. "The hard work of recent years has been worth the effort. The fact that
we have come top of this dynamic comparison speaks volumes for the efficiency
of companies and workers, but also for the proper economic policy frameworks
that we have put in place."

    Frauke Flenker-Manthey

    Press Officer
    Investment and Marketing Corporation Saxony-Anhalt
    Am Alten Theater 6
    39104 Magdeburg
    Germany
    Phone: +49(0)391-567-7076
    Fax: +49(0)391-567 7081
    E-Mail: flenker-manthey@img-sachsen-anhalt.de

    www.investieren-in-sachsen-anhalt.de

Frauke Flenker-Manthey, Press Officer, Investment and Marketing Corporation Saxony-Anhalt, Phone: +49(0)391-567-7076, Fax: +49(0)391-567-7081, E-Mail: flenker-manthey at img-sachsen-anhalt.de