Many German companies complain about a lack of orders. Compared to the previous year, the proportion has fallen significantly. The energy-intensive sectors are particularly affected.
A growing number of companies in Germany are complaining about a lack of orders. This affects both industry and the service sector, as the Munich Ifo Institute reported.
In the Ifo company survey in January, 36.9 percent of industrial companies reported missing orders, after 36.0 percent in October. A year ago, this proportion was significantly lower at 20.9 percent. Among service providers, the proportion of companies complaining about missing orders rose from 29.3 to 32.1 percent over the past four months.
“The lack of orders has noticeably worsened in the last year,” said Klaus Wohlrabe, head of the Ifo surveys.
In industry, energy-intensive sectors in particular have been hit. In the paper industry the proportion is almost 54 percent, in metal production and processing it is 53.3 percent, and in the chemical industry it is 40.6 percent. According to Ifo, personnel agencies (54.6 percent) are particularly suffering from a decline in orders among service providers. In the catering industry, 38.6 percent of businesses complained about a lack of guests.
Source: Stern
