German factory orders remain flat in May as demand declines

German factory orders in May failed to strike a ray of hope as rising global uncertainty deterred demand for goods.

Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, were unchanged from April, when they fell a revised 1.9 percent, data from the Economy Ministry in Berlin showed on Wednesday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted 1 percent rise in the data, which is typically volatile. Orders dropped 0.2 percent from a year earlier.

Domestic demand dropped 1.9 percent and orders from outside the euro area slid 0.3 percent, the data showed. Consumer-goods orders weakened 0.4 percent. Orders from the currency bloc jumped 4 percent, and investment goods climbed 1.9 percent.

Growth in global demand has declined amid an environment of slow corporate earnings and the fragile United Kingdom referendum surrounding its membership in the European Union, which have all worked together to weigh on consumer and industry confidence this year.

Moreover, the British vote in June, in which the nation opted to quit the EU, is expected to further weaken the German economy, Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann said last week in a speech at Munich.