(Reuters) - Germany is considering a half-trillion-euro fund to support companies thrown into payments difficulties by the coronavirus crisis, which will be able to guarantee liabilities or even inject capital when needed, Der Spiegel reported on Friday.
The plan is one of several being considered by officials as Berlin puts together a rescue package intended to keep the short-term havoc wrought by shutting down the economy from becoming a rout, an official told Reuters.
Ministers have already promised liquidity support to businesses and introduced measures making it easier to reduce working hours rather than lay off workers. The cabinet is due to decide on further measures on Monday.
One option is a 40 billion- to 50 billion-euro "solidarity" fund for the self-employed and businesses with fewer than 10 employees, which could help them buy materials, pay rents and meet leasing payments. The details for this program are due to be thrashed out over the weekend.
The roughly 500 billion-euro ($538.05 billion) fund first reported on by Der Spiegel is modeled on the 480 billion-euro Special Fund for Market Stabilisation that the government set up to prop up banks at the time of the financial crisis.
The government is prepared to revive that fund if banks get into difficulties, Der Spiegel said.
The Finance Ministry is currently considering direct support programs to a value of around 180 billion euros, the magazine said, adding that the sum might be increased to 700 billion euros.
"We are considering orders of magnitude that simply haven't existed before," it quoted a ministry official as saying.