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Economic strength and labour market
- Gross domestic product per person employed: 92,974 euros
- Purchasing power index (Germany = 100): 118.2
- Disposable income per resident: 26,087 euros
- Number of employed persons at the place of work: 542,399 (about 10% increase in employees subject to social security contributions since 2015)
- 969 employed persons per 1,000 residents
- Unemployment rate: 8.0
Rhineland metropolitan region
- 8.9 million residents
- 4,6 million people in employment (3.5 million employees subject to social security contributions)
- 530,000 companies affiliated to the IHK (Chamber of Commerce and Industry) (Germany has a unique density of international companies and a large number of medium-sized world market leaders)
- 354.8 billion euros GDP (11 percent of total for Germany)
For comparison:
Frankfurt region
- 5.8 million residents
- 3.1 million people in employment
- 242.4 billion euros GDP
Munich region
- 5.9 million residents
- 3.4 million people in employment
- 279.6 billion euros GDP
Hamburg region
- 5.3 million residents
- 2.9 million people in employment
- 225.2 billion euros GDP
Berlin region
- 6.2 million residents
- 3.2 million people in employment
- 180.1 billion euros GDP
Foreign companies, chambers and associations
Top 10 countries represented in Düsseldorf
(Number of companies registered in commercial register)
- Greater China* 628
- Netherlands 603
- UK 498
- USA 477
- Switzerland 340
- France 276
- Japan 268
- Turkey 162
- Austria 141
- Belgium 135
*Greater China: People’s Republic of China, Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan Source: IHK Special: Foreign companies in the Düsseldorf IHK (Chamber of Commerce and Industry) district, published 08/2019, data as of 1.8.2019
Chambers and associations
- 40 consular missions and
- 33 foreign chambers of commerce and foreign trade organisations
Japan location
Düsseldorf is home to the largest Japanese community in continental Europe
- 410 Japanese companies with over 10,300 employees in the city area, 550 companies in the region, 620 in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW)
- More than 8,451 Japanese residents live in Düsseldorf
- Direct flights between Düsseldorf and Tokyo
- Japan Desk of the Office of Economic Development offers services in Japanese.
- Comprehensive Japanese infrastructure: Consulate General, JIHK (Japanese Chamber of Industry and Commerce), kindergartens, schools, leisure and sports facilities, Buddhist temple, service providers
Dynamic China location
- 610 Chinese companies (Office of Economic Development's own survey)
- 6,200 Chinese residents live in Düsseldorf
- Direct flights between Düsseldorf and Beijing
- China Competence Centre at the Office of Economic Development offers services in Chinese
- Extensive Chinese infrastructure: Chinese Consulate General; Chinese Enterprise Association, kindergartens, schools, service providers
Education and research
- 35 public and 37 private universities in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- 12 Max Planck Institutes in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- 9 international Max Planck Research Schools in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- 14 Fraunhofer Institutes plus 3 Fraunhofer Application Centres in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- 3 Helmholtz Research Centres in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- 10 Leibniz Association Institutes in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- More than 520,000 students in the winter semester 2017/18 (Rhine-Ruhr region), including more than 50,000 students in IT and electrical engineering degree programmes in the Rhine-Ruhr region
- 15 Johannes Rau Research Foundations (NRW)
- Heinrich Heine University with 30,000 students
- University of Applied Sciences Düsseldorf (HSD) with 10,000 students
- Centre for Digitalization at the University of Applied Sciences Düsseldorf
- VDI Association of German Engineers (Düsseldorf)
- North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences and Arts (Düsseldorf)
- Ministry for Innovation, Science and Research of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
- DFG German Research Foundation (Bonn)
Startup city
- Over 400 startups in Düsseldorf
- Of which 136 in the life science, biotech, eHealth, food and fashion sectors in Düsseldorf
- More than 1,570 startups in NRW
Real estate market
Office market Düsseldorf
- Office space inventory 9.31 million m²
- Letting turnover around 240,000 m² (Düsseldorf city area)
- Vacancy rate 7.1%
- Prime rent 28.50 euro/m²
- Average rent 16.90 euro/m²
- 60 business centres and co-working spaces with over 100,000 m² in space
Commercial property market
- Warehouse and production space rental price range 4.50 to 7.50 euros per m²
Investment market
- Transaction volume 4.1 billion euros (record year 2020)
Industry location
- Around 1,300 industrial companies with over 34,000 employees
- Around 94,800 employees in “Netzwerk Industrie”
- Around 26 billion euros in sales
- Export rate about 46%
- Industry focus: vehicle construction, chemicals, mechanical engineering and steel
- Industry-related services of key importance
Legal advice and management consulting
- Top location for legal advice in Germany
- Over 1,100 legal firms and around 7,100 employees subject to social insurance contributions
- Most important place of jurisdiction for patent disputes in Germany
- 740 auditing firms with around 11,800 employees subject to social insurance contributions
Banks and insurance companies
Banking location
- Number 1 in NRW and ranked 2 in Germany
- 125 financial institutions
- With around 17,000 employees subject to social insurance contributions
- Home to international banks such as HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt, MUFG Bank Europe, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Bank of China Düsseldorf Branch, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Banque Européene Crédit Mutuel, GarantiBank International NV, Targo Bank
- Fintechs: Auxmoney, Ebury, Compeon
Insurance hub
- Home to headquarters of ARAG, ERGO, Interlloyd, ÖRAG, Provinzial; group subsidiaries such as those of the AXA Group, Deutsche Rück, QBE
- 10,880 employees subject to social insurance contributions in the insurance industry
Fashion and beauty
- Over 3,000 companies
- Head office in Düsseldorf: C&A, P&C, QVC, TK Maxx, Douglas(Beauty), L'Oreal (Beauty)
- 18 billion euros in sales
- 8.2% of Düsseldorf's economic output
- Around 33,600 employees
- 600 showrooms
- 1,000 designers from 32 countries
- 5 fashion trade shows: GDS/Global Shoes, Supreme Woman & Men, Gallery, Date, Interbride
- 2 beauty trade shows: Beauty International, Top Hair International
Cultural and creative industries
- Over 8.5 billion euros in annual sales across all sub-markets
- Advertising market and software and games industry are largest employment markets of Düsseldorf's cultural and creative industries
- Over 6 billion euros annual sales in the advertising industry alone
- More than 28,000 employees (of which 24,500 employees subject to social insurance contributions) at over 4,300 companies
- 13% of Düsseldorf companies are located in the cultural and creative sector