German factory orders rise 0.2% in February

German factory orders rose by 0.2% month-on-month in February, according to the Federal Statistical Office, missing estimates for a 0.8% jump but recovering from January's revised 11.4% tumble - the steepest fall since April 2020.

Orders grew for manufacturing electrical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and the chemical industry, while new orders contracted for automotive and manufacturing metal products.

Incoming orders expanded 2.2% for consumer goods and 1% for intermediate ones but fell 0.6% for capital goods.

Domestic orders gained 1.5%, while foreign orders dropped 0.7%, with demand from the Eurozone dropping 13.1% and demand outside the Eurozone rising 7.8% month-on-month.

The less volatile three-month average saw incoming orders from December 2023 to February 2024 rise 2.8% than in the previous three months. On an annualised basis, calendar-adjusted factory orders sunk 10.6%, steeper than the 6.2% fall seen in January.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com