Chancellor Angela Merkel said global markets “often have completely different interests” than policy makers, requiring Germany to try to reduce debt to ensure its financial independence.

Solid finances are needed “so we can be self-determined,” Merkel said in a speech to the Lower Saxony state convention of her Christian Democratic Union party in the northern town of Celle today.

Curbing debt “isn’t a penny pinchers’ project” but about giving people the chance to shape their future, Merkel said. “It won’t always be easy.”

Lower Saxony, which has a CDU-led government, holds state elections on Jan. 20.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tony Czuczka at aczuczka@bloomberg.net