Wednesday July 8, 11:09 AM
German industrial output jumps 3.7%: statistics
FRANKFURT (AFP) - German industrial production jumped by a surprise 3.7 percent in May from the previous month, a sign the country's deep recession might be nearing an end, figures released on Wednesday by the economy ministry showed.
Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a monthly rise of just 0.5 percent in Europe's biggest economy, and the figure followed an unexpected surge on Tuesday of 4.4 percent in industrial orders, a key indicator of future activity.
On an annual basis, industrial output nonetheless fell by 18.8 percent a ministry statement said, a clear indication of how much the economy has contracted in a year.
Analysts had expected an even greater loss of 20.0 percent however.
It was the second good piece of news in as many days from the economy ministry, which said Tuesday that industrial orders had climbed by much more than expected in May, suggesting that the upward momentum in output could be maintained.
Germany is suffering its worst recession since World War II, and the government has forecast that economic activity will shrink this year by 6.0 percent.
Between January and April, official data showed that more than 10,000 companies declared insolvency in the country, which depends heavily on exports for growth.
Large and small companies have been hit hard by the global economic slump, and chemical giant BASF said Tuesday that it would eliminate 3,700 jobs by 2013.
Rising unemployment has been limited by a government plan to subsidise shorter working hours, but if companies do not see a pickup soon, they are expected to start laying off workers in large numbers.
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