tURNOVER

The German Railway Industry Association (VDB) achieved a record turnover of 7.3 billion euros in the first half of 2021. “The outstanding sales figures clearly show that innovative mobility solutions “Made in Germany” are in demand around the world - even in times of crisis. The rail industry is clearly the industry of the future, ”said VDB President Andre Rodenbeck. Sales increased by 14 percent compared to the previous year, and export business in particular grew by almost 30 percent. In Germany, the rail industry generated 4.1 billion euros in the first half of the year, around 56 percent of total sales. The vehicle business remains strongest, accounting for 5.1 billion euros and around 70 percent of total sales. The infrastructure business increases by 10 percent to 2.2 billion euros. Despite the crisis, the number of employees in Germany rose by 1.3 percent to 53,800 employees.

Incoming orders

On the other hand, incoming orders for the first half of 2021 are regressing, falling to 7 billion euros. A decrease of almost 7 percent, which can also be attributed to the effects of the COVID crisis. Orders from abroad increase by almost 22 percent. However, according to Rodenbeck, incoming orders in Germany are showing too little dynamics: “The order situation does not match Germany's climate policy goals to decarbonise mobility through a shift to Rail 4.0”. The order on the home market fell by 19 percent to 4.2 billion euros. "It is true that one has to take into account the special effects of major orders from last year, but in view of the environmental policy tasks of the future, which have to be mastered primarily by rail, there is still significant potential for improvement", says Rodenbeck.