Forecast for 2019: machine builders fear the consequences of the trade conflict

The export-oriented German machine builders to more difficult transactions. The industry Association VDMA, confirmed on Tuesday the forecasts for the current year and the next, however, pointed to the increasing trade conflicts.

“our 2018 forecast production growth of five percent to the record value of EUR 228 billion is ambitious, but feasible”, said VDMA President Carl Martin Welcker at the annual press conference of the Association in Frankfurt. After ten months, the production growth was 3.7 percent, the new orders are seven percent higher than in the prior-year period. In 2019, but had to be expected that the world economy is slowing down.

Therefore, the predominantly medium-sized industry, including listed companies such as Thyssenkrupp and Gea expect, in the coming year with a production growth of two percent. The company will supply almost 80 percent of their machines abroad. The ongoing trade of the United States, China, the EU could be dragged into this dispute, the risk of a hard Brexit, the sanctions against Russia, as well as the debt crisis in Italy were among the hurdles for further growth.