Germany – Weak start to Q3

After the at least halfway positive order figures reported yesterday, there is more bad news from German industry today: industrial production fell by 2.4% in July compared to the previous month. In manufacturing the drop was even greater at 3.2%.

A look at the individual sectors shows that production in the automotive sector fell particularly sharply (-8.1%). However, this figure is likely to have been influenced by the timing of the summer vacations. The production figures already available for August indicate a significant increase in production again. This effect may also have played a role in the other sectors. However, it is doubtful that it can explain the overall decline in production. Production in the energy-intensive sectors also fell again in July by just under 2%. While this points to a stabilization, there has so far been no sign of a recovery triggered by the lower energy prices.

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