fra Bloomberg:
German factory orders unexpectedly fell for a second month in February in a sign Europe’s largest economy is still prone to risks.
Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, fell 0.9 percent after a revised decline of 2.6 percent in January, data from the Economy Ministry in Berlin showed on Wednesday. The typically volatile number compares with a median estimate of a 1.5 percent increase in a Bloomberg survey. Orders slid 1.3 percent from a year earlier.
The data contrasts with other reports that indicate strength in the economy and underscore the Bundesbank’s upbeat projections for growth. While instability from Greece to Russia highlights the risks for the recovery, surveys from Markit Economics show momentum is building in both manufacturing and services in Germany.
“There is absolutely no need to be worried,” said Andreas Rees, chief German economist at UniCredit Bank AG in Frankfurt. “The upward trend in business sentiment is intact, thereby heralding better hard economic data in the next few months.”
The euro pared its advance against the dollar after the report and was up 0.3 percent at $1.0843 as of 8:50 a.m. Frankfurt time.
Bulk Orders
Consumer-goods orders surged 2.9 percent in February from the previous month, and domestic demand for investment goods was up 1.9 percent, according to the report. Export orders declined 1.6 percent. The Economy Ministry had initially reported a 3.9 percent drop in January factory orders.
“Due to weak bulk orders, demand was significantly weaker in the first two months” of the year, the ministry said in a statement. “At the same time, sentiment indicators are sending positive signals. Overall, the trend in the industry should continue to point moderately upward.”
German manufacturing grew in March at the fastest pace since April 2014, a purchasing managers survey by London-based Markit Economics showed on April 1. Unemployment dropped to a record low last month, and economists predict industrial production increased for a sixth month in February.
“The crises that we have in countries like Greece and Russia could become once again relevant, though at the moment they don’t look like a big risk,” said Michael Holstein, an economist at DZ Bank AG in Frankfurt. “The German economy is in very good shape at the moment.
