Markit's Germany Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) was at an 25-month low of 53.7 in September, down from 55.9 in August. The decrease was attributed to the slowdown in the rate of expansion in production, employment and new orders and the decrease in delivery delays by suppliers. However, stocks of purchases showed a marginal rebound after a small decline recorded in August.
New orders increased relatively in September, showing the weakest increase in the current 46-month growth chain. The slowdown stemmed from the decline in new orders from abroad, which showed a decrease for the first time in over three years as well as recording the largest decline since June 2013.
The latest data showed that the decrease in demand in September largely stemmed from the capital goods sector which reflects the decline in both total orders and exports sales after showing a strong growth in August.
The survey showed that German goods producers’ confidence about the future production has weakened and that optimism was at its lowest degree since May 2015 due to the uncertainties regarding Brexit negotiations and the US-China trade war.