A container ship arrives at the harbor of the northern German city of Hamburg on March 26, 2020. (PHOTO / AFP)

BERLIN - Overall export demand, especially from China, helped Germany’s manufacturers recover from the shock of the coronavirus lockdown for the second month running in June, though output was still well below the level of a year ago.

Industrial output from Europe’s largest economy grew 8.9 percent on the month, fueled in part by a 14.9 percent increase in exports - the largest month-on-month increase in almost 30 years.

Germany’s automotive industry recorded a 54.7 percent increase in output over the previous month, though volumes were still 20 percent lower than in February, the last month before the pandemic struck.

China bought 15.4 percent more from Europe’s top exporter than in June 2019

ALSO READ: China to work with Germany, EU to add certainty to the world

“In manufacturing, we’re still 12 percent below the pre-crisis level,” said LBBW’s Jens-Oliver Niklasch. “Could industry recover from the corona collapse in just two months? Hard to believe, given the mood. But the glass is definitely more than half full.”

An Ifo research institute survey underlined the sense of optimism: manufacturers expect expansion over the coming three months.

But the overall export recovery masked considerable differences among countries in different phases of the coronavirus pandemic.

READ MORE: China, Germany to hold high-level financial dialogue

China, where the coronavirus outbreak was first reported, bought 15.4 percent more from Europe’s top exporter than in June 2019. But demand from the United States, which is still in the grip of a major outbreak, shrank 20.7 percent.

Trade relations with Britain, worse hit by the pandemic than most European countries and preparing for its commercial ties to be upended by departure from the European Union’s internal market, were also hit. It bought 15.7 percent less from Germany than last June and sold 21 percent less to Germany.