German industrial production expanded with 0.6% in January

The German industrial production expanded with 0.6% in January 2015 showing improving conditions in the sector, according to the latest report by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). The production in the country has expanded a seasonally adjusted 0.6% in the reporting period after a revised increase of 1% in the previous month. The market analysts had expected growth of 0.5%. Measured on an annual basis, production grew by 0.9% in the first month of the year compared with the adjusted increase of 0.5% a month earlier. The markets, however, predicted a contraction of 0.2%.

Looking at the monthly volatility, the outlook for German industry improved slightly. But so far, the investments are quite disappointing. Although funding conditions for German businesses have never been more favorable than at present, corporate loans still struggling to grow. In this context, the news this week that the German government will launch an investment program totaling 10 billion EUR in three-year period 2016-2018, the only seems like a drop in the sea. Meanwhile, industrial production in the fourth largest economy in the euro area slowed in the first month of the year, showed the latest report of the National Institute of Statistics of Spain (INE).

Seasonally adjusted data for industrial production showed an increase of 2% compared to the same period last year at the end of the reporting period after revised growth of 3.1% in the previous month. Adjusted data, however, showed that industrial production accounted for an increase of 0.4% in January compared with the zero increase in the previous month. Analysts had forecast a contraction of 0.3%.