Manufacturing industry expects investments to drop by 10 percent
- Projected investments adjusted downwards
- Investments metal and electro-technical industry anticipated to drop by 14 percent
According to the latest figures released by Statistics Netherlands, manufacturers anticipate a 10 percent drop in investments in 2009 relative to last year. This means that they are more pessimistic than in the autumn of 2008, when producers still expected investments to grow by 1 percent. The various branches in manufacturing industry anticipate a downturn in investments. If projected investments are realised, industrial investments will amount to 6.7 billion euro in 2009, approximating the level of investment in 2004 and 2005.
Manufacturers of metal and electro-technical products are most negative about the future level of investments. They foresee a decline in investments by approximately 14 percent this year relative to 2008. Last autumn, they still expected investments to grow by 1 percent. Manufacturers of food, drinks and tobacco products and chemical products are less pessimistic. They anticipate a downturn in investments in their sector by 6 percent this year .