German factory output down
November 6, 2015Industrial production in Europe's largest economy fell again for the second month in a row, Germany's economy ministry said Friday. It cited weakness in China and elsewhere as a reason for the slide.
Factory output was down 1.1 percent compared to August, when it also fell by 0.6 percent. Confidence among the country's industrialists was still good, the ministry noted, underscoring the hope that the problem would only be temporary.
Publication of the data came a day after factory orders were reported to have fallen by 1.7 percent in September. Germany is set to release its third-quarter GDP figures next week, and some analysts feel those numbers could reveal broader strain on the German economy.
"The Chinese and emerging market slowdown are also leaving their marks on the eurozone's largest economy," said Carsten Brzeski, chief economist at ING-Diba bank in Frankfurt.
cjc/tko (AP, dpa, AFP)