The ruling and opposition parties in Germany have agreed on a timeline for an early parliamentary election in February, following the collapse of the ruling coalition and Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election in the United States.

The leaders of the parties held talks on Tuesday and agreed to hold the vote on February 23.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had indicated he would take steps to allow for the election by the end of March, after the three-party coalition collapsed on Wednesday last week over a draft budget.

But there were growing calls from legislators and business leaders that a prolonged political vacuum should be avoided in view of Trump's victory and the slowdown of the German economy.

Scholz's coalition government, which was launched in 2021, has seen declining support amid internal rifts over economic and fiscal policies.

Opinion polls show that the largest opposition, the center-right alliance of the Christian Democratic Union and the Christian Social Union, is in the lead.

The focus of the parliamentary election is on whether Germany will have a new government centering on the alliance.