BERLIN (Reuters) – German industrial production rose significantly more than expected in January, increasing by 3.5% on the previous month, the federal statistical office said on Wednesday.
In a Reuters poll, analysts had pointed to an increase of 1.4% for the month.
The positive development “was driven in particular by strong growth in the manufacturing of electronic equipment … and chemicals,” the statistics office said.
It added that motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts manufacturing, as well as pharmaceutical products manufacturing, had shown a strong negative trend.
Also on Wednesday, the statistical office said that German retail sales had fallen unexpectedly in January by 0.3% in real terms compared to the previous month.
Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a 2.0% rise in
price-adjusted terms.
The office offers more detailed data on its website.
(Reporting by Friederike Heine; Editing by Paul Carrel and Matthias Williams)
