German industrial orders, a key measure of demand for German-made goods both at home and abroad, rose strongly in October, suggesting Germany’s period of economic weakness could be over, data showed Friday.
Industrial orders rose by 2.5 percent in October compared with the previous month, the economy ministry said in a statement, AFP reported.
In September, German factory orders had already risen by 1.1 percent. “This was a good start to the fourth quarter. Alongside a brightening of sentiment indicators, the signals are looking increasingly positive,” the ministry said.
“Even if the economic risks continue to exist, this suggests that the German economy could be gradually beginning to recover from its period of weakness.”
Domestic orders jumped by 5.3 percent and export orders edged up by 0.6 percent compared with the previous month.
Orders from the eurozone rose by 0.3 percent and orders from outside the eurozone were up by 0.8 percent.
By sector, orders for semi-finished goods climbed by 2.5 percent and orders for capital goods rose by 3.0 percent, while orders for consumer goods slipped by 0.1 percent.
Growth Cut
The German central bank on Friday downgraded its growth forecasts for the German economy, Europe’s biggest, for 2014, 2015 and 2016.
The Bundesbank said in a statement it is penciling in growth of 1.4 percent for 2014, 1.0 percent for 2015 and 1.6 percent for 2016.
Previously, it had been projecting growth of 1.9 percent, 2.0 percent and 1.8 percent for the three years, respectively.
“The German economy lost considerable momentum in the second and third quarters of 2014 and moved onto a flatter growth path,” the Bundesbank wrote.
“Following a brisk start to the year, which was partly fuelled by favorable weather conditions, real GDP (gross domestic product) did not grow any further in the second and third quarters ... and thus failed to live up to the hopes” of the central bank’s previous projections published in June.
