Domestic orders increased by 10%. Foreign orders were up 35% on the previous year. "The industry has been sensing for several months now that the mood among customers is brightening. Now this is finally making itself felt in the figures," commented Dr. Wilfried Schäfer, Executive Director of the VDW (German Machine Tool Builders' Association), Frankfurt am Main, on the result. However, the low initial values in the first quarter of 2020 were also the reason for the high growth, as demand fell sharply from March 2020 onwards due to coronavirus. A comparison with the first quarter of 2019 therefore provides a more realistic picture. Here, incoming orders are still 14% below the level at that time and only 1% higher abroad. "This means we still have a long way to go before we reach a good level again," summarizes Schäfer.

The non-Eurozone is primarily responsible for the upward trend in foreign orders in the current year. As the locomotive for the global economy, China is fueling demand and is being supported by the new beacon of hope, the USA. However, the recovery is taking place on a broader basis overall, as Europe is also reviving. Many sectors have a lot of catching up to do. The positive picture is rounded off by rising capacity utilization from a low of 67% last summer to 79% now.

Employment, a lagging indicator in economic development, is declining. In February, the sector employed around 7 percent fewer people than in the previous year. That is 66,800 women and men. "Compared to the decline in production and orders, this is a very moderate result. It shows how important it is for companies to retain their well-qualified staff. The short-time working rule has helped us a lot here," says Wilfried Schäfer.

Nevertheless, companies are struggling elsewhere. Supply bottlenecks are hampering production. In a recent coronavirus survey, almost half of the machine tool manufacturers surveyed stated that they are experiencing serious problems with the supply of electronic components, especially control systems. Forty-six percent are experiencing difficulties with steel and metal products. "There are already fears that orders cannot be processed on time because the supply chain has been severely disrupted," reports Schäfer.

The VDW expects production growth of 6% for the current year. The volume of EUR 12.9 billion will be higher than during the 2009/2010 financial crisis, but still far below the record years of 2018 and 2019.