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Steel plates are cut to size by a machine builder: The machine builder's production fell 3.3 percent in September
Photo: Stefan Puchner / dpa
In the meantime, things looked better over the summer, and economists had also forecast a recovery in the German economy, which was plagued by considerable material shortages, in September.
In fact, things have turned out differently: In September, the industry surprisingly throttled its production for the second month in a row, and the considerable material bottlenecks put a huge strain on the manufacturers.
Specifically, industry, construction and energy suppliers together produced 1.1 percent less in September than in the previous month, as the Federal Ministry of Economics announced.
Economists had expected growth of one percent.
In August, at 3.5, there was the sharpest decrease in production since the first Corona wave in spring 2020.
Production is currently still 9.5 percent lower than in February 2020, the month before the start of the restrictions due to the corona pandemic in Germany.
Auto industry is recovering somewhat
"The supply bottlenecks for raw materials and preliminary products that have been going on for a long time are thus reflected on a broader front," said the ministry.
"Until the shortages are permanently resolved, the outlook for the industrial economy will remain gloomy."
The industry, but also many craftsmen, have been complaining for months that urgently needed raw materials and preliminary products are missing or delayed in delivery: chips for car on-board computers as well as insulating materials for construction sites or wood for furniture.
According to experts, the shortage is already slowing the recovery of the German economy after the corona pandemic - and could also change private consumer behavior over the long term.
Industry alone produced 1.5 percent less in September.
While the automotive industry was able to increase its production by 2.1 percent, emissions in similarly weighty mechanical engineering fell by 3.3 percent.
There were also declines in other areas such as electrical equipment (-3.3 percent) or data processing equipment (-4.3) and metal products (-0.5).
The companies are currently sitting on well-filled order books.
In many cases, however, the orders cannot be processed due to acute bottlenecks in preliminary products such as microchips.
Energy generation, on the other hand, was ramped up by 1.0 percent, and the construction industry was even able to increase its output by 1.1 percent in September.
However, the shortage of skilled workers is increasing there, according to a survey by the Ifo Institute.
In building construction, 34.1 percent of companies reported a shortage of skilled workers in October, after 33.5 percent in the previous month.
»The shortage of skilled workers is a central problem for the construction industry.
More than every third company does not find enough staff, ”says Ifo researcher Felix Leiss.
"At the same time, the demand for construction work remains very high."
apr / Reuters