Press release No. 046 of 6 February 2025

New orders in manufacturing:
December 2024 (in real terms, provisional):
+6.9% on the previous month (seasonally and calendar adjusted)
-6.3% on the same month a year earlier (calendar adjusted)

November 2024 (in real terms, revised):
-5.2% on the previous month (seasonally and calendar adjusted)
-1.4% on the same month a year earlier (calendar adjusted)

WIESBADEN – Real (price adjusted) new orders in manufacturing were up 6.9% in December 2024 month on month after seasonal and calendar adjustment, according to provisional figures of the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). When large-scale orders are excluded, new orders were 2.2% higher than in the previous month. The less volatile three-month on three-month comparison showed that new orders remained unchanged (0.0%) in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared with the previous quarter, and new orders excluding large-scale orders were up 1.4%. After revision of the provisional data, new orders in November 2024 decreased by 5.2% on October 2024 (provisional figure -5.4%). In 2024 as a whole, new orders were 3.0% lower than in 2023 after adjustment for calendar effects.

The positive development of new orders in manufacturing in December 2024 was essentially attributable to the substantial growth in the "manufacture of other transport equipment" sector (aircraft, ships, trains, military vehicles), where new orders were up 55.5% on the previous month due to several large-scale orders. Increases in new orders observed for the manufacture of machinery and equipment (+8.6%) also had a positive impact on the overall result. By contrast, the decrease in the automotive industry (-3.2%) had a negative impact.

New orders in the intermediate goods sector were up 0.2% in December 2024 on a month earlier. New orders for capital goods and consumer goods rose by 10.9% and 7.7%, respectively.

Compared with the previous month, domestic orders were up 14.6%, which was mainly due to the large-scale orders for the manufacture of other transport equipment. Foreign orders increased by 1.4%, with new orders from the euro area up 6.2%, whereas new orders from the rest of the world fell by 1.5%.

New orders in 2024: stabilising trend observed in the second half of the year

In 2024 as a whole, new orders in manufacturing were 3.0% lower than in the previous year, on a calendar adjusted basis. The downward trend observed since 2021 continued in the first half of 2024, while a stabilising trend was seen in the second half.

In the capital goods sector, new orders in 2024 were 2.5% lower than a year earlier. The manufacture of machinery and equipment recorded a decline of 6.6%, while new orders in the automotive industry remained almost unchanged (+0.1%). New orders for the manufacture of other transport equipment (aircraft, ships, trains, military vehicles) rose by 3.4% in 2024 compared with the previous year. 

Producers of intermediate goods saw new orders fall by 4.0% in 2024 from a year earlier. The decline in this sector was mainly attributable to the development in the manufacture of electrical equipment (-11.4%) and the manufacture of fabricated metal products (-10.7%). Compared with 2023, new orders in the chemical industry and the paper industry rose by 1.8% and 2.2%, respectively.

Turnover in December 2024 down 0.1% on the previous month

According to provisional figures, real turnover in manufacturing (seasonally and calendar adjusted) in December 2024 fell 0.1% from a month earlier. Compared with December 2023, the calendar adjusted turnover was down 3.9%. After revision of the provisional data, there was an increase of 1.4% in November 2024 from October 2024; the provisional result was confirmed.

In 2024 as a whole, real turnover was 4.0% lower than a year earlier after adjustment for calendar effects.  Here, too, turnover mostly declined in the first half of the year, while it tended to stabilise in the second half-year.

 

Methodological notes:

The differing comparative periods must be taken into account in all press releases on short-term indicators. Short-term economic monitoring focuses on comparisons of seasonally and calendar adjusted figures with those of the previous month or quarter. These reflect short-term economic trends. Year-on-year comparisons of calendar adjusted results enable long-term comparisons of levels and are not influenced by seasonal fluctuations or calendar effects.

New orders and turnover in manufacturing are recorded and evaluated in accordance with the "Classification of Economic Activities, 2008 edition (WZ 2008)". Information on new orders is collected only in selected branches (only in German) of manufacturing. The rates of change are based on the price adjusted indices of new orders and of turnover in manufacturing. The average figure for 2021 is used as the basis of the index and set to 100 index points (2021 = 100). The X13 JDemetra+ method was used for calendar and seasonal adjustment.

For better readability, this press release uses a short form for the names of some economic branches which differs from the designations in the "Classification of Economic Activities (2008 edition)". An overview of these short forms (only in German) is provided on the "Industry, manufacturing" page on the website of the Federal Statistical Office.

More information:

Detailed data and long time series are available in the GENESIS-Online database (42151-0004 indices of new orders, 42151-0008 indices of new orders excluding large-scale orders, and 42152-0004 turnover indices).

A dossier on the "Short-term indicators" page of the Federal Statistical Office's website provides an analysis of the relationship between material shortages, new orders, production and prices in industry. Detailed information on production in energy-intensive industrial branches (only in German) is available on the "Industry, manufacturing" page.

Information on new orders in manufacturing can also be found on the Economic Dashboard, which is part of Dashboard Germany (www.dashboard-deutschland.de (only in German). In this data portal, the Federal Statistical Office brings together up-to-date indicators from official statistics producers and other data providers on the topics of the economy, finance, the labour market, construction, housing, energy and Ukraine. The portal also contains the Economic Pulse Monitor tool (Pulsmesser für die Wirtschaft) (only in German) for real-time economic monitoring.