Germany's industrial production suffers the biggest drop in 30 years

German industrial production declined in April by 17.9% in comparison with the previous month and by 25.3% in comparison with April 2019 due to the impact of the coronavirus - the biggest decline in nearly 30 years said the Federal Statistics Office (Destatis). 

By March, when restrictions on mobility and economic activity to combat the pandemic became widespread in many countries, industry output had already fallen by 8.5% from February and by 11.3% from the same month last year. 

This drop is the largest in the historical series since January 1991, said Destatis. The impact was particularly strong in the automobile sector, since official data indicate that its production fell by 74.6% in April compared to March. 

Apart from industrial production itself, energy generation fell 7.2% in comparison with March and activity in the construction sector 4.2%. 

The Ministry of Economy stated in a statement that the fall in production registered in April has reached the lowest point of the crisis caused by the economic consequences of the pandemic. "The lowest point of the conjunctural crisis has been reached. With the gradual relaxation of restrictions and the return to production of the automobile industry, the economic recovery will be underway, “said the ministry.

The industry expects that in the coming months a downward trend in production, although not as strong as in April and May.

The IFO economic institute, one of the main companies in Germany, anticipates that the production expectations index, which is based on a survey among industrialists, went from -51 points in April to -20.4 in May.