Trends in Key Customer Industries

In 2024, global goods production grew more strongly than in the previous year. However, it lagged behind the growth rates of GDP and the services sector. Industry growth was dampened in particular by a decline in automotive production, following the previous year’s strong growth, and a weak momentum in the construction industry, amid falling but still high interest rates in the United States and Europe, as well as the crisis in the Chinese housing market. In contrast, the production of consumer goods in the nutrition, care and health sectors supported industrial growth.

Global industrial production expanded by 2.1% overall (2023: 1.5%). In the advanced economies, it largely stagnated, while in the emerging markets it grew by 3.9% (2023: +2.9%). In the EU, industrial production declined by 1.9%; in North America, it rose by 1.1%, and in Asia it grew by 4.2% overall. China accounted for around three-quarters of global industrial growth. North America accounted for only around one-tenth of global growth, while the EU made a negative contribution.

In 2024, global automotive production decreased by 1.1% from 90.5 to 89.5 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles. In China, the world’s largest automotive market, it increased by 3.7%. In contrast, production in the EU, North America, Japan and South Korea decreased by around 4.4% overall. However, production in these countries had increased by around 12% in 2023, slightly outpacing China’s growth of 10%. Automotive production in India also increased by around 4%. Growth in the production of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) was once again significantly higher than that of the market as a whole: A total of 1.0 million more BEVs were produced; this corresponds to growth in this segment of around 9.5% compared with the previous year. Consequently, electric vehicles’ share of all vehicles produced rose from around 12% in 2023 to around 13% in 2024.

The energy and raw materials sector expanded by 2.1%. Growth in this sector was mainly driven by the production of non-energy raw materials, the refining business and energy supply. However, oil and gas production remained largely stagnant.

Demand in the construction industry remained subdued, despite the interest rate reversal initiated by central banks in Europe and the United States in 2024, already reflected in falling longer-term rates. Overall, construction activity expanded by 1.4%. Development varied across the individual construction segments: Residential construction declined slightly, while commercial building construction saw a modest uptick. As in previous years, the infrastructure segment saw considerable growth. The EU construction industry saw a considerable overall decline, most notably with a sharp downturn in new residential construction. Conversely, construction activity in North America recorded solid growth across all segments. This was partly due to base effects in the U.S. residential construction sector given the decline in construction activity of nearly 10% in the previous year and extremely limited supply of existing properties on the market. In China, building construction activity, measured by area under construction, continued to decline considerably.

After stagnating in the previous year, consumer goods production increased by 1.5% in 2024, lagging behind global GDP growth. Production in the furniture industry remained stable after experiencing a sharp decline in the previous year. The textile industry returned to moderate growth after a decrease in the previous year. Production of chemicals for the manufacture of care products grew slightly faster than global GDP.

The electronics industry saw considerable expansion of 7.6% again after stagnating in the prior-year period. Key drivers of growth were electronic components (semiconductors), computers and the again increasing demand for replacements in consumer electronics.

Production in the health and nutrition sector increased by 2.4%. The pharmaceutical industry grew at a similar rate to global GDP. All major markets generated growth again following a weak previous year. Food production as a whole grew at a slower pace. It increased in the EU and emerging Asian markets, while declining in the United States and Japan.

At 2.2%, growth in the agricultural sector was below the level of the previous year. Production in the EU largely stagnated. South America built on its solid above-average growth from the previous year, driven primarily by catch-up effects in Argentina. Brazilian agricultural production, on the other hand, decreased considerably. In North America, growth remained at the low level of the previous year. The growth rate of agricultural production in Asia was slightly higher than the global average.