New orders to German chemical producers rose 0.4% in April from March on a seasonally, calendar and price-adjusted basis, extending the moderate growth trend into a fourth straight month, according to preliminary data Tuesday from the federal statistics office Destatis.
New order flows were underpinned by fresh domestic demand, which rose 1.9% on the month in the wake of lower demand in February and March, while export orders eased 0.7% after three months of gains. New business from eurozone countries fell 1.4%, while that from countries outside the common currency zone slipped 0.2% month-on-month.
Orders for base chemicals rose 1.7% on a 5.2% hike in domestic business and a 0.8% decrease in export demand, according to the data.
Across Germany's entire manufacturing sector, new order activity shrank 1.9% from the upwardly revised March numbers on weaker export demand and a below-average volume of large orders.