After an economic downturn
Auto industry more confident again thanks to export prospects
Sales of German cars abroad are going well. photo
© Jörg Sarbach/dpa
The mood in the German auto industry is slowly brightening again. Above all, the view of the future is less bleak than it was a few months ago.
Better export prospects are lifting the mood in the German auto industry. The corresponding indicator from the Ifo Institute rose in March to its highest value since last May, as the Munich economic researchers announced. At minus 5.8 points, it was 4.1 higher than in February.
“The German automotive industry now seems to have finally emerged from the economic low of the second half of 2023 and is looking more confident again future,” said Ifo expert Anita Wölfl. The key driver for the positive development was the future outlook, which improved from minus 29.5 to minus 18.7 and is no longer quite as negative as last year. The assessment of the current The situation, however, deteriorated slightly from 11.9 to 8.1 points.
Export to the USA and China
The export prospects were particularly positive, according to the Ifo Institute. They improved by 23.7 to plus 13.8 points. That was the best value since April 2023. One reason for this is probably the positive development in the USA and China, the two most important sales markets for the German auto industry, according to the Ifo.
Another bright spot is that there are only a few problems in the supply chains. “The efforts that the German automotive industry has made since the pandemic to make supply chains more resilient seem to be paying off here,” said Wölfl.
Last year, the mood in the German auto industry fell significantly. In particular, business expectations had deteriorated significantly and were at times more negative than at the height of the corona pandemic. Since the end of 2023, however, the trend has been pointing upwards again.