The industrial sector in Germany experienced another period of weakness towards the end of last year. In December, total production in the manufacturing industry declined by 1.6 percent compared to the previous month, according to data released by the Federal Statistical Office in Wiesbaden. This marks the seventh consecutive month of contraction in industrial manufacturing, with December's downturn representing the most significant drop since March of the previous year. Analysts, who had anticipated a milder decline of only 0.5 percent on average, were caught off guard by the severity of the setback.

The Federal Statistical Office highlighted particularly steep declines in production within the chemical industry and the construction sector during December.