German export industry "cautiously optimistic": ifo Institute

BERLIN, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- Sentiment in Germany's export industry has improved slightly, with the indicator of export expectations rising from 0.9 points in November to 1.6 points in December, the ifo Institute for economic research said on Tuesday.

German manufacturers are "cautiously optimistic as they head into the new year," ifo President Clemens Fuest said. Meanwhile, the country's important car industry is expecting significant growth.

In November, car exports were up 26 percent year-on-year, according to the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA). Total passenger car exports reached around 2.4 million in the first eleven months of 2022.

The country's carmakers will "close the current year with a significant increase in exports, albeit still well below pre-COVID-19 crisis levels," a VDA spokesperson told Xinhua on Tuesday.

Germany's electrical industry is also optimistic, "increasingly seeing opportunities in international business," according to the ifo Institute. The metal sector and chemical industry, on the other hand, anticipate a decline in exports.

As an energy-intensive industry, the country's chemical sector has been hit hard by the energy crisis. With costs rising more sharply than prices, around 80 percent of companies have reported falling profits, according to a recent survey by the German Chemicals Industry Association (VCI). One in four companies are already seeing losses.

"Chemistry is in almost all objects of daily use," VCI President Markus Steilemann said, warning that an economic downturn in the sector would also lead to supply shortages in all areas of daily life.