Mechanical engineering benefits from rapid recovery

After six years, China has overtaken the USA again as the largest foreign market for German mechanical engineering companies. This is according to data published by the VDMA industry association on Wednesday. The reason for this is also the Covid crisis: While other markets such as France and the USA were still suffering considerably from the pandemic, China quickly put the slump behind it. „Already last year, many companies there felt a high investment dynamic,“ said VDMA Chief Economist Ralph Wiechers. Capacity utilization in China reached an all-time high in the spring, he added. In the first quarter of 2021, exports to China rose by 20 percent to €4.9 billion. The US was close behind with €4.7 billion. In view of positive signals from the USA, however, it remains to be seen whether China will maintain its lead in the further course of the year. fin