Data published by the German association Zvei in its Business Cycle Report (April edition) show an increase in new orders of about 6%. The report present also the results of the German electrical and electronic industry in terms of production, turnover and business climate. Here are the details.
New orders
After the steep increase in the previous month, new orders in the German electrical and electronic industry have risen in February 2017, too. Altogether they exceeded their pre-year level by 5.9%. While bookings from domestic clients increased strongly by 12.3% – inter alia due to large orders -, foreign customers raised their new orders only slightly by 0.8%. Here new orders from the euro area rose by 6.1%, but bookings from third countries declined by 2.6%. In the full period from January through February of this year new orders have picked up by 6.4% (again year-on-year rate). Domestic bookings grew by 9.8% and, therewith, more strongly than foreign orders which exceeded their pre-year level in the same period only by 3.8%. For new orders from euro zone customers a plus of 8.8% was recorded, whereas bookings from non-euro area countries merely increased by 0.8%.
Production
The real output – i.e., production adjusted for price – of the domestic E&E industry has failed its respective pre-year level by 1.4% in February. However, 2016 has been a leap year so that last year’s February had one working-day more than this year’s February. Accumulated from January through February of this year real production was 4.4% higher than in the same period a year ago. The sector’s companies have raised their production plans in March of this year, too. The balance out of firms, which intend to expand or rather reduce their output within the next three months to come, has gone up from 30 to 33%-age points compared to the previous month.
Turnover
With 14.3 billion euro the domestic E&E industry’s turnover has only slightly exceeded its pre-year level by 0.3% in February 2017. But while domestic sales decreased by 2.3% to 6.8 billion, foreign sales increased by 2.6% to 7.5 billion. The businesses with partners from the euro area declined by 4.4% to 2.7 billion, whereas turnover with customers from third countries picked up by 6.8% to 4.8 billion. From January through February 2017 the sector’s turnover came to 28.6 billion, leaving it 6% higher than a year earlier. Sales to domestic clients rose by 3.8% to 13.7 billion. At the same time, turnover with foreign customers picked up more dynamically by 8% to 14.9 billion. Here businesses within the euro zone rose by 4.6% to 5.5 billion and sales to clients from third countries soared by 9.9% to 9.4 billion.
Business climate
The business climate within the German E&E industry has picked up in March of this year, too. It is on the rise for seventh months now. The companies’ evaluation of their current situation was slightly better than a month earlier, whereas expectations rose markedly. 47% of the sector’s firms assess their present economic situation as good, 44% as stable and only 9% as bad. Regarding expectations for the next six months to come, 34% of the companies are awaiting rising businesses. 60% reckon that their activities will be steady. Merely 6% anticipate declining affairs. Export expectations have likewise risen in March. Here the balance out of positive and negative forecasts increased from 18 (in February) to 22%-age points.
