Following a May slump in business for Germany’s distribution sector that some have called a “… disaster” with a surprisingly low sales level which observers were unable to explain, June has brought some relief.

“June has saved the day,” Jörg Feger, economist at steel distributors’ federation Bundesverband Deutscher Stahlhandel (BDS), tells Kallanish after an early look at the most recent statistics. With 974,000 tonnes sold, June not only saw an increase on May’s 815,000t, but with nearly one million tonnes was also a longer-term success. “Anything with a “9” in front we call good,” Feger says.

According to current estimates, sales from January to June were -4% lower than in the first half of 2014, a period characterised by ample stock-building. Looking forward, BDS assumes that the second half of 2015 will be on par with the first half. 2014 had seen a splendid start in terms of business, but this had slowed over the course of the year.

Feger estimates that this year’s sales will be slightly under last year’s level, but the gap will be smaller than the value of -4% indicated so far.  “It seems that July went quite well, too, while August is a school holiday month in all states,” Feger notes, adding that increased activity can be expected for September/October.