Analysts had on average expected a decline of 1.0 percent for industrial production in April, according to the news agency Bloomberg.
In annual terms, the decline for the German industry – an important export market for many Swedish companies – was 1.8 percent in April, compared to expected minus 0.7 percent.
The slowdown in April followed an increase in March of 2.3 percent for Germany's industrial production, according to revised figures.
German exports in April fell by 1.7 percent compared to the previous month. It was also a larger decline than expected. The average forecast was 1.4 percent, reports Bloomberg.
Germany's imports rose simultaneously by 3.9 percent, compared to expected plus 0.5 percent.
Net, this resulted in a surplus in Germany's trade balance of 14.6 billion euros, compared to expected 19.1 billion euros.
