ANKARA

Germany's factory orders grew at the strongest clip in more than three years in December, led by an exceptional number of aircraft orders, according to official data on Tuesday.

The new orders in German manufacturing surged 8.9% from a month earlier in December, the largest hike since June 2020, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said.

The figured bucked market expectations of a 0.1% month-on-month decline, following a stable reading in November 2023.

With a record high number of aircraft orders in December, new orders in the other vehicle construction (aircraft, ships, and trains) more than doubled, surging 110.9% from the previous month. ​​​​​​​

On an annual basis, new factory orders rose by a calendar-adjusted 2.7% in December.

As a whole in 2023, Germany's factory orders dropped 5.9% year-on-year.