German economy can get through long virus lockdown - finance minister

Europe's biggest economy can hold out through a coronavirus shutdown for a long time, German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday, adding he expected lower levels of government debt than after the financial crisis of 2008.

"We can hold out for a long time," Scholz told ZDF television. "Budget legislators in the German parliament have authorised us to provide the aid that is needed," he said.