According to preliminary results released by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Monday, the real order backlog in Germany’s manufacturing industry increased by 0.5 percent in August 2026 compared to July, once seasonal and calendar effects were accounted for. Year-over-year, the order backlog rose by 10.7 percent, based on calendar-adjusted figures.
The positive month-on-month development in the order backlog was contributed by increases in the mechanical engineering sector (up 0.5 percent, seasonally and calendar-adjusted), in the other vehicle manufacturing segment (including aircraft, ships, trains, and military vehicles; up 0.3 percent), and in the production of data processing equipment, electronic, and optical goods (up 1.4 percent). Conversely, the overall result was negatively affected by a decline in the automotive industry (-0.4 percent).
Specifically, domestic outstanding orders rose by 0.4 percent in August 2026 compared to July 2026, while the backlog of orders from abroad increased by 0.5 percent.
Within industry sub-groups, the order backlog for manufacturers of capital goods increased by 0.2 percent month-on-month in August 2026, and for producers of intermediate goods, it rose by 1.1 percent. In the consumer goods sector, however, the order backlog was marginally lower, decreasing by 0.1 percent.
The coverage duration of the order backlog remained constant at 9.0 months in August. For manufacturers of intermediate goods, the coverage stayed steady at 4.6 months compared to the preceding month; for manufacturers of capital goods, it stood at 12.6 months; and for consumer goods producers, it was 4.3 months.
