In line with the weakness of the international economy and the decline in world trade in 2019, the growth of Austrian foreign trade flattened significantly in the course of the year. Exports to Austria's three most important export markets remained below the previous year's level, in particular because deliveries of primary products, machinery and motor vehicles collapsed. With the decline in exports, economic activity in manufacturing also cooled down considerably in the course of the year. However, the individual sectors of the economy were affected differently. Some sectors (e.g. the pharmaceutical industry, beverage production) continued to record high growth. Technological developments led to an increase in investment in intangible assets, while growth in investment in equipment came to a standstill towards the end of the year due to the economic situation. At the beginning of 2020, an upward trend became apparent, but this was ended by the COVID-19 crisis.