German April industrial production data showed today that the deterioration in manufacturing conditions that became apparent in the first quarter continued into the second.
Industrial output compared with March fell by 0.9 per cent, the German finance ministry said, against analysts' expectations of a gain of 0.2 per cent. It said the data was also likely to be revised downwards. Separate April orders data released on Thursday was also weaker than expected.
The GDP data showed European export markets dried up in the first three months of the year. Exports grew by just 0.1 per cent compared with 3.0 per cent in the last quarter of 2000. Imports plunged 1.5 per cent compared with growth of 2.7 per cent in the last quarter of 2000.
In line with expectations, the data showed growth in domestic demand ground to a halt with a slight rise in household spending offset by a sharp drop in investments.