German Orders and Retail Sales Disappointing

A setback to the recovery in Europe’s largest economy.
Lower demand for German products, particularly from overseas, meant weak orders for the country’s manufacturers in November.
Adjusted for seasonal factors, orders grew just 0.2 percent from the previous month according to Economy Ministry figures.
Demand for new cars fell for the first time in 11 months in December.
This week it was reported that China had overtaken Germany as the world’s biggest exporter in the first 10 months of last year.
Exports had risen 2.5 percent – month-on-month – in October. But in November overseas orders were down by one percent and a 1.4 percent rise in domestic orders was not enough to compensate.
German retail sales were also disappointing in November.
They were down 1.1 percent from the previous month and declined 2.8 percent on November a year earlier.