German manufacturing orders decline in March 2024

The three-month-on-three-month comparison paints a more concerning picture, showing a 4.3 per cent decrease in new orders from January to March 2024 compared to the previous three months, as per Destatis.

Breaking down the orders by product type, intermediate goods saw a decrease of 0.4 per cent compared to the previous month, while consumer goods experienced a rise of 0.7 per cent. On the international front, foreign orders increased overall by 2 per cent, buoyed by a significant 10.6 per cent increase in orders from the euro area. In contrast, orders from non-euro area countries fell by 2.9 per cent. Domestic orders within Germany declined sharply by 3.6 per cent.

Turnover in manufacturing also reflected a downturn, decreasing by 0.7 per cent in March 2024 from the previous month. When adjusted for the calendar, turnover was down by 3.9 per cent compared to March 2023. There was a contrasting positive revision for February 2024, which saw turnover increase by 1.1 per cent over January, revised from an initially reported increase of 2.2 per cent.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)