German factory orders fall amid tariff, growth woes

FRANKFURT, Aug 06 (AFP): German industrial orders unexpectedly fell in June, official data showed Wednesday, as Europe's biggest economy struggles with prolonged domestic weakness and volatile US trade policy.
New orders, closely watched as an indicator of future business activity, dropped 1.0 per cent month-on-month, according to preliminary data from federal statistics agency Destatis, after a fall of 0.8 per cent in May.
Analysts surveyed by financial data firm FactSet had expected a rebound of 1.3 per cent in June.
Orders from abroad fell three per cent, with a particularly heavy drop from countries outside the eurozone, while domestic orders increased slightly.
There were big falls for orders from the crucial automotive sector, of transport equipment such as trains and ships as well as metal products.
The economy ministry said that big swings in orders were no surprise "given the persistent high level of trade and geopolitical uncertainty".
"The industrial economy is likely to be characterised by subdued foreign demand in the future in light of what are now likely to be permanently higher tariffs on exports to the United States," it added in a statement.
EU exports to the United States have already faced tariffs of varying rates for several months.
Under a deal struck between the bloc and US President Donald Trump last month, they are set to face across-the-board levies from Thursday of 15 per cent, which will hit export power Germany hard.