Wiesbaden - Key German manufacturing industry sales fell by a record 23.3 per cent year on year in February, figures released Tuesday showed. The nation's statistics office said the plunge came in the wake of a dramatic 27.5 per cent drop in foreign manufacturing turnover for Europe's biggest economy. Domestic sales slumped by 19.5 per cent over the previous year.

Leading the fall was the country's car industry with auto makers' turnover plummeting 39.6 per cent in February compared to the same month in 2008.

Overall the fall in manufacturing sector data turnover was the the biggest year-on-year decline since the statistics series were first collected in 1991.

Seasonally adjusted German manufacturing industry turnover recorded a drop of 4.3 per cent over January's figures.

In the light of the economic crisis, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel has invited top industry representatives to attend discussions at her Berlin office next week.

The talks will focus on the effectiveness of two government stimulus packages already in place. There were no plans to discuss a third stimulus programme, a government spokesman said. (dpa)