BERLIN, Sept 5 - Following are economists' reactions to Economy and Labour Ministry data showing German industrial output in July rose by 2.4 percent month-on-month, far exceeding the consensus forecast in a poll for a rise of 0.8 percent . Most recent comments:
THOMAS HUECK, HYPOVEREINSBANK:
"They're impressive figures. Production which was hit by strikes (in the engineering sector over east German working hours) was carried over from June to July. The strike was felt in key areas in western Germany." "Similarly, a lot of holidays began in July and so there may have been a bit more output ahead of that. The holiday effect during the summer makes analysis extremely difficult." "I think August will be very bad. However, the trend is interesting: the percentage of those industrial sectors where we see activity increasing is still quite low in the longer term comparison and even fell in June. That's a sign that we still have no broad basis yet for recovery and recovery is not yet cut and dried. It could take until the fourth quarter. Despite a good start, the third quarter won't end up as good."
Earlier comments: ULLA LAHL, MIZUHO CORPORATE BANK:
"It was much stronger than we expected. The strong increase with capital goods is a good sign for future investment. Consumer goods were strong too. The leading indicators have indicated an upturn in the economy. Together with those indicators and orders yesterday, which were positive numbers compared to the second quarter, this is a sign that the upturn is here. The worst is behind us." "The fact the school summer holidays were mainly in August could mean we see a drop in the August numbers but for the rest of the year we will see an upwards direction."///