FRANKFURT (AFP) – German factory orders unexpectedly surged in December 2023, official data showed yesterday, boosting hopes that a manufacturing slowdown in Europe’s largest economy was bottoming out.
New orders, closely watched as an indicator of future business activity, jumped 8.9 per cent month-on-month, federal statistics office Destatis said, after stagnating in November 2023. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected a slight drop.
Destatis said the surprise rebound was driven by a few big-ticket items, with the “other vehicle construction” sector seeing a 110 per cent jump in orders.
Electrical equipment manufacturing also saw strong order growth, as did metal products and pharmaceuticals. Orders for motor vehicles and chemical products declined, however.
In the less volatile three-month comparison, industrial orders were up just 0.1 per cent, Destatis said.
Over the whole of 2023, orders were 5.9 per cent lower than the year before. The industrial slowdown contributed to a wider downturn in the German economy.
