German chemical firms see weak growth in 2020
Germany’s key chemicals industry on Tuesday said it expected only a small increase in revenues next year after a “difficult” 2019, as headwinds from trade wars and a darkening economic outlook persist.
German chemical and pharmaceutical firms saw revenues shrink by 5.0 percent this year to 193 billion euros ($213 billion) -- below the symbolically important 200-billion-euro level.
Production meanwhile plummeted by 7.5 percent year-on-year, the VCI industry federation said.
“2019 was a difficult year for the chemical and pharmaceutical industry,” the industry body said in a statement.
Foreign demand suffered from “the global economic slowdown and trade conflicts between the United States and China”.
At home, there was less demand from industrial customers amid wider manufacturing woes in Europe’s powerhouse economy. Chemicals are Germany’s third-largest industrial sector, and its products are vital inputs for many manufacturing processes in other industries.
The VCI represents 1,700 firms ranging from giant multinationals like BASF and Bayer to tiny family companies, together employing over 460,000 people.
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