November 2023 marked the sixth month in succession that output from Germany’s manufacturing industry fell compared with the previous month, reports the federal statistical office Destatis (Wiesbaden; www.destatis.de). Seasonally and calendar-adjusted, the decline amounted to 0.7%. A comparison with the corresponding figure for the previous year sounds even more negative – when compared with November 2022, the fall was a hefty 4.8%, reports Destatis.

The plight is illustrated by the figures. Industrial production – in other words the manufacturing segment without energy and construction – fell in November 2023 compared with the previous month by 0.5%. The production of capital goods was down 0.7%, production of intermediate goods was down 0.5%, and production of consumer goods was down 0.1%. Production in the construction industry dropped by 2.9%. 

In the energy-intensive branches of industry – this includes the chemical industry and large sections of the plastics sector – production (seasonally and calendar-adjusted) rose according to Destatis in November 2023 compared with the previous month by 3.1%. However, in an annual comparison with November 2022, production fell by 4%.