German industrial production rebounds in May

BERLIN –Industrial production in Germany bounced back in May after slumping in April, official data showed Friday, as manufacturers in Europe's powerhouse economy appeared to brush aside global trade war fears. 
Industrial output surged 2.6 percent month-on-month, federal statistics authority Destatis said, following a 1.3-percent contraction in April. 

The increase beat expectations of analysts surveyed by Factset who had predicted a modest 0.6-percent boost in production. 

The upbeat report comes a day after data showing Germany's industrial orders revived in May, suggesting Europe's largest economy may not face the sharp slowdown some observers feared despite trade tensions with the United States. 

"This week's data make it easier to become optimistic again," said ING Diba bank analyst Carsten Brzeski, noting it was the strongest performance for industrial production since November. 

"After months of disappointments this good news comes exactly at the right time, washing away at least some of the concerns about the strength of the German economy." 

May's rise in industrial production was led by strong showings in consumer and investment goods as well as construction output, which jumped 3.1 percent. 

The economy ministry said the data pointed to a "moderately upward trend". 
Brzeski agreed: "After a period in which the assessment of the German economy has gone from 'up one minute, down the next' in slightly more than six months, it is in our view time for some matter-of-factness and -- given lowered expectations -- even time for some modest optimism." 

Punishing US tariffs on Chinese imports took effect Friday, the first shot in what Beijing called "the largest trade war in economic history" between the world's top two economies. 

Meanwhile fears of a transatlantic trade war have intensified after US President Donald Trump slapped punishing tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, prompting retaliation from the European Union. 

Trump last weekend charged that Europe is "possibly as bad as China" on trade, as he reiterated that he is mulling import taxes of 20 percent on EU cars. 
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