Germany's parliament will hold a second vote on Tuesday on backing Friedrich Merz as chancellor after the veteran conservative failed to secure enough support in a first round, throwing politics in Europe's largest economy into disarray.

Germany was long a beacon of stability in Europe, its politics often reassuringly boring. "Germany and Europe need a strong leader in the German chancellor's office," said economist Holger Schmieding of Berenberg Bank.

Friedrich Merz succeeded in his bid to become the next German chancellor during a second vote in parliament, hours after he suffered a historic defeat in the first round.