German industrial orders unexpectedly fall in Feb

[BERLIN] German industrial orders unexpectedly dropped in February due partly to firms receiving fewer major contracts, after bookings already plunged in January, suggesting the manufacturing sector of Europe's largest economy had a subdued start to 2015.

Orders for goods made in Germany decreased by 0.9 per cent on the month, data from the Economy Ministry showed, confounding expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.5 per cent rise.

The decline was driven by a drop in demand for capital and intermediate goods. Contracts for consumer goods, which rose by 2.9 per cent due to strong appetite from abroad, were the only bright spot.

The data for January was revised up to a fall of 2.6 per cent from an originally reported 3.9 per cent plunge.

REUTERS