German manufacturing orders rise 1.9% in May, beating expectations

New manufacturing orders in Germany rose more than expected in May, driven largely by strong demand in the transport equipment sector, official data showed Monday.

New orders in manufacturing increased 1.9% month-on-month in May after seasonal and calendar adjustment, according to provisional figures from the Federal Statistical Office, Destatis.

The reading beat market expectations of a 1.1% monthly rise.

Excluding large-scale orders, new orders were up 1% from the previous month.

On an annual basis, manufacturing orders rose 6.2% in May.

The April figure was revised to a 3.2% monthly decline from a previously reported 3.8% fall. Compared with the same month last year, orders in April were up 2.1%.

Destatis said the monthly increase in May was mainly attributable to an 85% surge in orders in the manufacture of other transport equipment, including aircraft, ships, trains and military vehicles, due to several large-scale orders.

Orders also rose in the manufacture of machinery and equipment, up 3.7%, and electrical equipment, up 5.7%.

The automotive industry, however, recorded a 3.8% decline, while orders for computer, electronic and optical products fell 7.8%.

By category, new orders for capital goods increased 2.2% month-on-month in May, while orders for intermediate goods rose 1.4% and consumer goods orders gained 2.4%.

Foreign orders climbed 2.2%, supported by an 11.2% jump in orders from the euro area. Orders from outside the euro area declined 3.2%.

Domestic orders rose 1.3% in May.

The less volatile three-month comparison showed new orders in the March-May period were 0.2% lower than in the previous three months. Excluding large-scale orders, however, they increased 4.1%.

Real turnover in manufacturing also rose 1.8% month-on-month in May and was 4.2% higher than a year earlier, Destatis said.