German factory orders rise in August on foreign demand

BERLIN – Factory orders in Germany, Europe’s largest economy, rose strongly in August after two months of declines, boosted by strong foreign demand from outside the eurozone.

The Economy Ministry said Friday that orders rose 2 per cent in August over July, in seasonally and calendar adjusted figures. That follows a 0.9 per cent drop in July and a 3.9 per cent drop in June.

Orders are still down 2.1 per cent on the year but ING economist Carsten Brzeski says the figures support his forecast of solid German growth in the second half of 2018.

Domestic orders dropped 2.9 per cent in August, but that was offset by a 5.8 per cent rise in foreign orders.

Foreign orders from countries using the euro currency dropped 2.2 per cent, but those from non-eurozone countries rose 11.1 per cent.