Surprise fall in German industrial orders in July

[FRANKFURT] Industrial orders in Germany fell unexpectedly in July, weighed down by lower demand both in Germany and the euro area, preliminary official data showed on Wednesday.

New orders decreased by 0.7 per cent month-on-month in July, adjusted for seasonal and calendar effects, the federal statistics authority Destatis said.

Analysts surveyed by data company Factset had predicted a slight increase of 0.1 per cent.

Orders from within Germany fell 1.6 per cent and those from eurozone neighbours were down one per cent, while contracts from the rest of the world increased 0.6 per cent, Destatis calculated.

Demand for German-made goods was down across all sectors, with orders for producer goods and capital goods falling by 0.4 per cent and 0.7 per cent respectively, while there was a three per cent drop in orders for consumer goods.

Nevertheless, eliminating highly volatile large contracts from the data showed an increase of 0.6 per cent compared with the figure for June, Destatis noted.

"The trend for industrial orders points slightly upwards," the economy ministry in Berlin insisted in a statement.

In June and July combined, orders increased by 1.1 per cent compared with the preceding two months, the ministry calculated.

"Ordering activity remains at a very high level," the statement added.

"According to the indicators, the solid upturn in industry should continue." AFP