Germany is losing industrial jobs at an accelerated rate – and this is no longer a localized slump, but a steady trend. According to a fresh study by EY, the industry cut employment by 2.1% over the year, with the auto industry losing about 51,500 jobs (-6.7% year-on-year). Weak demand, expensive energy, competition from Asia, US duties and the expensive transition to electric vehicles are squeezing margins and forcing concerns to optimize staffing levels. In Q2 2025, industry revenue fell 2.1% YoY to €533bn, continuing a series of quarterly declines.
Structurally, the auto sector was the hardest hit, but contractions are also evident in mechanical engineering and metals, while chemicals and pharma are showing relative stability, as evidenced by both public excerpts from the EY barometer and industry commentary in the German business press. In aggregate, German industry has shed around a quarter of a million jobs since 2019, reflecting the cumulative effect of several consecutive shocks.
Operational metrics point to a sluggish cycle, with new orders in manufacturing falling in June and annualized turnover declining; this combination usually signifies weakness over the horizon of the coming quarters, even if individual months produce technical bounces in production. At the macro level, this is combined with a fall in GDP in Q2 and a downward revision of the dynamics of the beginning of the year.
The political backdrop has become tougher, with Chancellor Friedrich Merz openly stating that the current welfare state model is “unfundable” without reforms, signaling a possible shift in budget priorities in favor of incentives for employment and industrial competitiveness. For business, this means less room for “inertia” subsidies and more pressure on productivity, R&D and export adaptation.
What this means for companies and the labor market. Automakers and their supply chain will likely face a second wave of restructuring to accommodate the EV economy and US tariff geopolitics; engineering will continue to lose low-margin positions to Asian competitors, and growth will shift to high-engineering value-added niches. For chemicals and pharma, the window of resilience is preserved through contractual models and pricing power, but energy-intensive segments remain vulnerable to spot gas and electricity disruptions. The labor market will be “two-speed”: release on the assembly line and in basic metalworking in parallel with a shortage of specialists in automation, electronics, software, battery technologies and chemical technologies – this is already evident in the structure of vacancies and industry surveys.
Conclusion. The job cuts are not the “end of industry” but a painful realignment: Germany is losing mass jobs where it is losing out on costs and is trying to retain and grow employment in capital- and knowledge-intensive segments. The key to a turnaround is cheaper energy, faster permitting procedures, prioritization of industrial investments and retraining for the electric and digital agenda. In the meantime, order and turnover statistics signal that the bottom of the cycle has not yet been passed.
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Registrations in Ukraine of new and used electric vehicles in 2021 increased by 18.9% compared to 2020 – up to 8,541 units, while registrations of new cars accounted for 14.2% versus 8.9% a year earlier, the Federation of the Automotive Industry of Ukraine (FAU) reported. “The year ended positively. In December, the number of registrations per month exceeded 900 for the first time, amounting to 928 electric vehicles – twice as many as a year ago, and 8% more than in November,” the report says.
At the same time, the three market leaders remained unchanged – Nissan, Tesla, Chevrolet, which together hold 55% of the market.
According to the above statistics, the leader of registrations Nissan (market share 26.1%) last year showed a slight increase (by 1%, or 26 cars) – up to 2,227 units (for 11 months showed a fall of 1%).
At the same time, Tesla registrations (19.6% of the market) decreased by 16% – to 1,670 units, and Chevrolet (with a 9.4% market share) increased sales by 54% – to 802 units.
“It is interesting that almost all brands have increased sales – except Tesla and Kia. In particular, Audi doubled sales, which allowed it to break into the top ten to the 7th place,” the report says.
In the ranking of brands, after the top three, there are Renault (an increase of 76%, to 551 units), Volkswagen (by 80%, to 550 units), Hyundai (by 43%, to 363 units), Audi (up to 334 units), Mercedes-Benz (up 28%, to 236 units) and Kia (down 13%, to 154 units).
Fiat failed to stay in the top ten, which in 2020 took fourth place, and in 2021 – 12th.
