BERLIN, July 16 (Xinhua) -- Germany's manufacturing sector will lose 177,000 jobs in 2025. While the automotive sector accounted for the largest share of employment losses, data showed that Europe's largest economy was under increasing pressure due to the long-standing industrial contraction.
According to the data announced by the Federal Employment Agency on Wednesday, the number of employees in the manufacturing industry in the country as of December 2025 was reported as 6.5 million. This number constituted approximately one-fifth of the total employment covered by social security throughout the country.
The agency stated that employment growth in other sectors was not enough to compensate for losses in the manufacturing industry, and therefore total employment in the country decreased by 108,000 people last year.
According to the data, the automotive industry, including suppliers, lost 52,000 jobs throughout the year, while 28,000 jobs were lost in machinery manufacturing and 24,000 jobs were lost in metal production.
The German labor market remains under pressure, with the economy registering little or no growth over the past three years. According to the agency's latest data, the unemployment rate was 6.2 percent in June, while the number of unemployed reached approximately 3 million.