German factory orders slump by 7% in January

German factory orders fell sharply in January, according to official data published on Friday, highlighting the struggles faced by Europe’s largest economy.

Orders fell a larger-than-expected 7% from the previous month, with the federal statistics office citing a “significant” decline in orders for machines and vehicles such as ships and aircraft. Excluding large-scale orders, it slipped by 2.7%.

Germany’s likely centre-right/socialist coalition may provide a boost with plans to reform the country’s debt brake mechanism to allow more defence and infrastructure spending in response to sluggish economic growth and the war in Ukraine.

There may also be a boost from European Union plans to ramp up defence spending and creation of a €150bn fund from which countries could draw.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com