BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - German manufacturing orders increased in April confounding fears that higher tariffs by the US administration would hit the factory sector, official data revealed Thursday.
Factory orders rose 0.6 percent month-on-month in April, following a revised 3.4 percent rise in March, Destatis said. This was the second consecutive month of growth. Orders were expected to fall 1.0 percent.
Excluding large-scale orders, new orders were 0.3 percent higher than in the previous month, the agency said.
On a yearly basis, factory orders logged an expansion of 4.8 percent, faster than the 3.7 percent growth in the prior month.
New orders for capital goods rose 4.1 percent compared to last month, while new orders for both intermediate goods and consumer goods dropped 3.4 percent and 5.9 percent, respectively.
Foreign orders dropped 0.3 percent month-on-month, with a 0.9 percent decline in orders from outside the Eurozone. Meanwhile, orders from the euro area gained 0.5 percent. Domestic orders registered a monthly growth of 2.2 percent in April.
Real turnover in manufacturing decreased 1.5 percent on a monthly basis in April, in contrast to the 2.3 percent increase in March. Year-on-year, real turnover was down 1.0 percent.
ING economist Carsten Brzeski said industrial orders data is the first hard industrial data illustrating the potential impact of Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' on German industry.
At least for now, the feared full reversal of the frontloading effect of the first quarter has not materialized, Brzeski noted.
The economist said the increase in order books suggests the cyclical recovery of German industry continues.
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