BioNTech vaccine to give German economy extraordinary boost

Germany’s economy is on track to receive an extraordinary boost from a single start-up this year after BioNTech SE raised its forecast for Covid-19 vaccine sales to 15.9 billion euros ($18.6 billion).

The German drugmaker, which has partnered with Pfizer Inc., could see revenue contributing about half a percentage point to growth in German gross domestic product, according to Sebastian Dullien, a professor of International Economics at HTW Berlin. That’s because a large part of the Mainz, Germany-based company’s production is focused in Germany, he says. While some of its revenue might include inputs from abroad, the company’s profit-sharing agreement with Pfizer counts toward German GDP.