In July, Germany’s machinery and plant engineering sector again felt the effects of double-digit declines in orders that has been continuing for months.
In real terms, orders were 11% below their year-earlier level, according to the latest report from the VDMA which represents 3,600 German and European mechanical and plant engineering companies operating Germany. Orders from Germany were down by 8% and from abroad by 13%. The 15% drop from non-European countries in the month under review was significantly higher than the 7% year-on-year decline from European countries.
"Companies are still posting sales increases,” said says Ralph Wiechers, VDMA chief economist. “For example, price-adjusted sales in July were up 3% on the previous year. In nominal terms, it was even an increase of 11%. However, due to a lack of sufficient new orders, order backlogs and thus still available buffers for production and sales are gradually decreasing."
In the less volatile three-month period from May to July, orders fell by 12% year-on-year in real terms. There were 6% fewer orders from the domestic market and 15% fewer orders from abroad. European countries remained 17% below the previous year's level, while the drop from non-European countries was 14%.
A video with Wiechers can be seen on the VDMA website by clicking here.
