German Industrial Orders and Output Fall in January
German industrial orders fell by 11.1 percent in January while production dropped 0.5 percent. Analysts remain optimistic for 2026 growth despite the weakness.
Germany's industrial sector experienced a significantly weaker start to 2026 than anticipated, with both factory orders and manufacturing output declining in January. Data from the federal statistics office revealed that industrial orders dropped by 11.1% on a seasonally and calendar-adjusted basis, ending a four-month period of consecutive growth. This decline far exceeded the 4.5% fall predicted by analysts in a Reuters poll. While the headline figure showed a sharp contraction, the statistics office noted that the volatility was largely due to a lack of large-scale orders. When these are excluded, the decline in January was a more modest 0.4%. This follows a strong performance in December, when industrial orders saw their largest increase in two years.
