In March, the machinery and plant engineering sector in Germany recorded a year-on-year decline in orders of six percent in real terms, with 10 percent fewer orders coming from Germany and four percent fewer from abroad. The non-euro region fared better than the euro countries, with a decline of one percent (minus 10 percent).
The bottom line for the first quarter of 2023 as a whole was a year-on-year decline in new orders of 13 percent in real terms. From January to March inclusive, domestic orders fell by 14 percent, and 13 percent fewer orders came from abroad (euro countries: minus 11 percent, non-euro countries: minus 13 percent). "March was the first month with a single-digit decline in orders since September 2022, which is a small ray of hope - knowing full well that the large-scale plant business helped somewhat with this result. I would certainly not speak of a turnaround at this point in time. It is definitely too early for that," said VDMA Chief Economist Dr. Ralph Wiechers.