Comment: The German railway company is trying to spin a fairy tale.

Federal Transport Minister Steffen Bilger (CDU), whose punctual start to his "summer tour" this Monday was foiled in a self-test by a defective ICE air conditioning system, is not only quickly learning how to deal with the ailing state-owned company, but also from the railway boss herself. Just leave something out, that's how she did it at the end of July when presenting the DB half-year figures, and suddenly the world looks much rosier.

With this clever strategy, Evelyn Palla had pulled off what is probably her most dazzling PR coup to date. Thanks to a profit surge of €0.9 billion, it was announced joyfully, the company had been able to record a profit in the first half of the year for the first time in seven years, and she called the alleged result of her restructuring course an "important milestone".

Those who fought their way through to page 27 of the DB interim report learned the true reason for the surprising profit surge, which had been hailed in almost all media on the day of publication: "the higher funding of maintenance services for the rail infrastructure by the federal government (€0.9 billion)". The additional government funds, which are now also allowed to flow into maintenance by law, are reflected in the "other operating income" of the DB Group - and thus have an impact on the result. The amount corresponds almost exactly to the celebrated profit surge.