This may be due to Germany taking a page from the American playbook: issue lots of debt, buy stuff that blows up (armaments), repeat.
From Reuters, July 17:
Germany's
industrial order backlog rose to a record high in May, the statistics
office said on Friday, highlighting strong demand for a manufacturing
sector that has endured a prolonged downturn.
The backlog of outstanding orders grew by 1.7% in May compared with the previous month, the office said, the sharpest increase since September 2021, when there were catch-up effects due to the COVID-19 pandemic.As a result, order books are the fullest since the data series began in 2015.However, Bethmann HAL bank chief economist Alexander Krueger warned that high order levels are only valuable if they translate into actual production.German industrial production rose more than expected in May, according to the statistics office, while S&P Global's manufacturing PMI data for June showed output ticking up for a sixth straight month."Despite the governing coalition's reform package, companies are likely to remain cautious in this regard," said Krueger, citing challenging business conditions and higher energy costs.Many companies are also increasingly shifting production abroad rather than keeping it in Germany, he said."Orders are also likely to continue piling up for the time being, partly due to renewed tensions in the Middle East," he said. "Supply bottlenecks are hampering production."....
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