German industry orders jump
February 6, 2012
A 12.3-percent surge in demand from countries outside the European Union helped orders for German industry rise by 1.7 percent in December compared with November, government figures released Monday showed.
However, orders from the EU dropped by 6.8 percent, while domestic orders fell by 1.4 percent, the German economics ministry said in a statement.
The rise in December came after a sharp 4.9-percent drop in orders in November, and according to the ministry wasn't enough to drive fourth-quarter order figures into positive territory. They fell by 1.4 percent compared with the third quarter.
Describing the outlook for industrial output as "subdued," the ministry, however, also said: "At the same time, the continued improvement in business confidence at the start of this year suggests that an end to the current phase of weakness is in sight."
In January, Germany's business climate index rose for the third month in a row.
Signs of 'stabilization'
The figures presented by the German economics ministry are adjusted for seasonal factors, and stronger than expected by analysts. They had predicted a rise of only 1 percent in December.
"The German economy has certainly moderated in the fourth quarter, but today's data seem to suggest that factory activity has not collapsed," Annalisa Piazza of Newedge Strategy told AFP news agency. "However, one shouldn't read too much out of one-month swings," she added.
Thorsten Polleit of Barclays Capital Research told AFP that the orders data "appear to send a stabilization signal."
Christian Schulz, senior economist at Berenberg Bank, said the figures "in isolation do not point to an imminent growth rebound yet." But he added that "signs of hope for a swift recovery led by export markets continue."
Sectors which reported particularly strong demand were machine tools and car manufacturing. Orders there went up 2.8 percent in December, while demand for consumer goods from Germany rose by 1.9 percent.
Author: Uwe Hessler (Reuters, dpa, AFP)
Editor: Kristin Zeier