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Orders for Germany’s mechanical engineering and plant engineering businesses remained flat in April as the sector struggled with weak domestic demand, according to figures released on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
“For Germany\u2019s mechanical and plant engineering industry, April was a month of mixed results,” the Association of German Mechanical and Plant Engineering (VDMA) said in a statement.<\/p>\n
While orders from abroad rose by 4% month-on-month in real terms despite the war in Iran and other geopolitical tensions, domestic demand was down 7%, the VDMA said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe bottom line is that orders in April remained flat compared to the previous year,\u201d VDMA Chief Economist Dr. Johannes Gernandt was quoted as saying.<\/p>\n
Gernandt criticized the German government for what he described as insufficient action to boost the sector.<\/p>\n
“There is still too much talk about measures to strengthen competitiveness and far too little action. We need lower corporate taxes, a more flexible labour market, real cost relief from bureaucracy, and a reform of the social security systems,” he demanded.<\/p>\n
Orders were up by 5% in the less volatile three-month period from February to April, driven especially by large-scale orders in a strong March.<\/p>\n
Demand was particularly high outside the eurozone, where orders were up by 9%.<\/p>\n
Orders from euro-currency members remained flat, and domestic demand dropped by 2% over the period.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n