Arbeiter in einem Werk stehen für Auftragseingang im Verarbeitenden Gewerbe.

© Monty Rakusen/cultura/Corbis

According to the Federal Statistical Office1 , new manufacturing orders fell between July and August by 4.0%..2 They had already fallen by 2.0% in August. Overall, according to recent figures, orders stood at 10.8% below the preceding year’s level.

The month-on-month decline was due to a slump in foreign demand. While domestic orders were still slightly up, orders from abroad fell by 6.3% in the non-euro zone and by as much as 8.0% in the euro zone. At sector level, sharp declines in the two largest industrial sectors, automotive (-9.0%) and mechanical engineering (-8.1%), impacted the overall index.

The high level of new orders that came from pent-up demand after the coronavirus pandemic appears to have come to an end. The number of new orders is now back at the same level as before the pandemic. This is also reflected in the double-digit negative rate of change compared with the previous year (-10.8%). The outlook for the industrial sector remains gloomy in view of the high energy prices, which are increasingly being passed on to final consumers. After a surprisingly positive development of gross domestic product in the third quarter, it is expected that growth in the fourth quarter will be weak.

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1 Press release by the Federal Statistical Office of 4 November 2022.
2 All figures are based on provisional data and have been adjusted for price, calendar day and seasonal factors (X13 JDemetra+ procedure).