According to preliminary data from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), real (price-adjusted) production in the manufacturing industry rose by 3.0 percent seasonally and calendar-adjusted in March 2025 compared to February 2025. Additionally, the production in the first quarter of 2025 was 1.4 percent higher than in the fourth quarter of 2024, as reported by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Thursday. This marks the strongest increase in production on a quarterly basis since early 2022.
The preliminary result for February 2025 was confirmed by the Federal Office (-1.3 percent compared to January 2025). In comparison to the same month of the previous year, March 2024, the production in March 2025 was 0.2 percent lower on a calendar-adjusted basis.
Destatis states that the positive development in the manufacturing industry in March 2025 is spread across many economic sectors. The production increases in the automotive industry (+8.1 percent), the pharmaceutical industry (+19.6 percent) and the machinery industry (+4.4 percent) had a significant impact on the overall result.
The industrial production (manufacturing industry without energy and construction) increased by 3.6 percent seasonally and calendar-adjusted in March 2025 compared to February 2025. Within the industry, production increased across all three main groups: consumer goods and investment goods increased by 4.9 percent each, while the production of intermediate goods increased by 1.1 percent. Outside of the industry, energy production declined by 1.8 percent in March 2025 compared to the previous month. Construction production increased by 2.1 percent.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, the production in energy-intensive industries increased by 1.5 percent seasonally and calendar-adjusted in March 2025 compared to February 2025. On a quarterly basis, the production in energy-intensive industries from January 2025 to March 2025 was 1.2 percent higher than in the previous three months. In comparison to the same month of the previous year, March 2024, the energy-intensive production in March 2025 was 2.3 percent lower on a calendar-adjusted basis.