New orders of Germany's manufacturing sector slumped by 5.8 percent in August on a calendar and seasonally adjusted basis compared with July, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reported on Monday.
A breakdown of the monthly data showed domestic orders dropped significantly by 10.9 percent, foreign orders fell by 2.2 percent, and orders from outside the euro zone declined by 10.5 percent.
The decrease was partly attributable to the very large orders for transport equipment, including aircraft, ships and trains, recorded in the previous month, Destatis said. Excluding large-scale orders, new orders in August were only 3.4 percent lower than in the previous month.
The slump is also reflected in the retail sector. The Ifo Business Climate in German retail fell to -25.6 points in September from -23.1 points a month before. Retailers said they're grappling with an even worse situation in September and have become more pessimistic about the coming months, according to a report by the Munich-based Ifo Institute for Economic Research.
As the latest data point to a delayed economic recovery, the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action is to revise its growth forecast and expects the Europe's largest economy to shrink by 0.2 percent, down from its previous forecast of 0.3 percent growth, leading German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported on Sunday.
German industrial orders down 5.8 pct in August
More efforts will be made for key urban renewal projects, with the goal of fully releasing huge potential of new urbanization and generating new drivers of economic growth, said Liu Sushe, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner, in Beijing on Tuesday.
Liu made the remarks at a press briefing that was held by the State Council Information Office on systematically implementing a package of incremental policies to solidly promote economic growth, structural optimization and sustained momentum of development.
According to Liu, China's urban development has entered a phase where both new construction and the renewal of existing infrastructure are of equal importance, with the latter facing an increasingly heavier burden.
The renovation of urban underground utility networks, such as gas, water supply, drainage, and heating systems, will require the installation of nearly 600,000 kilometers of new pipelines and cost up to around 4 trillion yuan (around 567.18 billion U.S. dollars) over the next five years.
Looking ahead, China will take a phased approach to implement the urban renewal and renovation projects, according to Liu.
Priority will be given to projects that can enhance public safety and improve people's livelihood, such as the refurbishment of aging urban residential communities and neighborhoods and the revitalization of urban villages, Liu added.
At the start of the press briefing, the NDRC announced investment projects valued at 200 billion yuan (about some 28.35 billion U.S. dollars) that are in next year's plans will be released in advance this year to support the implementation of major national strategies and building up of security capacity in key areas.
"[In the pre-allocation funds,] we will give priority to a batch of key urban renewal projects. Currently, the financial demand for urban underground utility network is substantial, and we hope to prioritize support for these key projects. For the 2023-2024 period, the NDRC has earmarked over 470 billion yuan from the central budget, the issuance of additional government bonds, and ultra-long special treasury bonds, with a particular focus on the renovation of urban gas and drainage networks and the renovation of old urban residential communities, among others," Liu said.
China to support urban renewal projects to advance new urbanization
