Yesterday German factory orders data delivered a welcome surprise as industrial orders where shown to have risen by 2.2 per cent in March, and today another piece of better-than-forecast German data is helping to improve the nation’s outlook.
It looks like the German economy may just have avoided entering a recession, as industrial output increased by 1.2 per cent in March (month on month) despite economists expecting a decline of 0.1 per cent.
This result means that industrial output in Germany gained by 0.2 per cent in the first quarter of this year, as appose to the 2.6 per cent slump recorded in the final quarter of 2012, which bodes well for overall German growth.
Although the report detailed a steep decline in construction output, this was offset by a 4 per cent surge in energy use and a 2.1 per cent advance in capital goods.
In a statement accompanying the figures the economy ministry asserted: ‘The improving orders situation in manufacturing as well as (expectations of) catch-up activity in construction should give the industrial sector a boost over the coming months.’
As Germany is the largest economy in the Eurozone, and a driving force in European trade, this positive development also bolsters the prospects of the 17-nation currency bloc as a whole.
After the news was released the Euro posted gains against the majority of its currency peers, notably climbing by half a cent against the US Dollar.
Euro Exchange Rates (as of 12:20 am GMT)
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The Euro is trading against the Pound in the region of 0.8473 >
The Euro is trading against the US Dollar in the region of 1.3134 >
The Euro is trading against the Australian Dollar in the region of 1.2878 >
The Euro is trading against the New Zealand Dollar in the region of 1.5648 >
The Pound is trading against the Euro in the region of 1.1807 <
The US Dollar is trading against the Euro in the region of 0.7618 <
The Australian Dollar is trading against the Euro in the region of 0.7759 <
The New Zealand Dollar is trading against the Euro in the region of 0.6391 <