Supply issues have eased among manufacturers in Europe’s largest economy, according to the latest poll by the Munich-based ifo Institute (www.ifo.de).

It said only 67.3% of survey respondents in Germany reported bottlenecks and problems obtaining intermediate products and raw materials in January, which was sharply lower than the 81.9% record set in December (see Plasteurope.com of 13.01.2022).

“Despite this development, companies still have much to worry about,” said Klaus Wohlrabe, the head of surveys at ifo. “It remains to be seen if this is a trend reversal.”

For the plastics and rubber sector, the number of those complaining fell to 70% from nearly 82% in December after peaking at a record 84% in September. In the car industry, 77.9% reported problems, which was down from 92.9%, ifo said.

“The slight easing gives companies the chance to work off their high order backlogs and increase production,” Wohlrabe added.