International Business / The Pacific

Thousands Rally Against German Budget Cuts: German workers demonstrated against Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s proposals for sharp cuts in the federal budget, and police said a rally planned for this weekend in Bonn could attract hundreds of thousands of protesters. More than 20,000 Volkswagen employees marched from their plant to the center of town in Wolfsburg for a rally against the proposed $32-billion austerity package, which includes cuts in Germany’s generous social benefits. Kohl says the budget cuts are needed to boost the weak economy, restore competitiveness and combat soaring unemployment, which has hit postwar records this year. The German Labor Federation is expecting up to 300,000 to attend the rally Saturday.