1ST LEAD German business express concern about slow talks to form government By Andrew McCathie, dpa

Berlin (dpa) - German employers have called on Chancellor Angela Merkellsquo;s conservatives and the Social Democrats (SPD) to speed up their efforts to build a new coalition government, underscoring business concerns about the nationlsquo;s political stalemate."Please do not have wretched long discussions, but a swift formation of government with good results, which means a growth-friendly agenda for Germany," Steffen Kampeter, who heads the German Federation of Employers (BDA), told the daily Passauer Neue Presse on Thursday.Kampeter was speaking one day after leaders from Merkellsquo;s Christian Democrats (CDU), their Christian Social Union (CSU) allies and the SDP agreed to hold an initial round of talks starting on January 7 to explore whether to hold formal coalition negotiations for a rerun of the current CDU/CSU-led government alliance. The BDA chieflsquo;s comments also added to signs of the growing unease among German business leaders about the length of time it is taking to build a new government following Septemberlsquo;s inconclusive election."We expect that a government will be formed as soon as possible," the president of the influential Federation of German Industry (BDI), Dieter Kemp, told dpa. "We cannot afford the deadlock to continue for a long time," said Kemp, adding that he hoped the holiday season would provide the nationlsquo;s political leaders with an "opportunity for reflection."Kemp pointed to the challenges facing German businesses, including the need to step up the digitalization of the nationlsquo;s industry and reform of the European Union.The German economy is expected to post its fastest expansion rate in six years in 2017, with many analysts predicting growth to come at a minimum of 2.4 per cent.However, a key indicator released this week showed German business confidence recording an unexpected fall in December as industry leaders grew concerned about economic conditions in Europelsquo;s biggest economy six months down the track.The Munich-based Ifo economic institute said on Tuesday its closely watched business climate index edged down to 117.2 points from an all-time high of 117.6 in November.Germany has now been without a government for the longest period since World War II with Merkel heading a caretaker administration since the September 24 election when support for both the CDU/CSU and SPD slumped to its lowest level since 1949.The Merkel-led bloc and the SPD want to conclude their exploratory talks after five days on January 12.However, there are big differences between the parties on several key issues including refugees, health insurance and Europe. As a result, party officials are not expecting a new government to be formed under the chancellorlsquo;s leadership until April.Even if next monthlsquo;s exploratory talks prove successful, an SPD party meeting planned for January 21 still has to decide whether the party should launch formal coalition negotiations with the CDU/CSU.