German industrial orders beat expectations

(MENAFN- AFP) German industrial orders, a key measure of demand for German-made goods both at home and abroad, rose sharply in November, outpacing analysts' expectations, data showed on Wednesday.Industrial orders rose by 2.1 percent in November compared with the level in October, buoyed by a disproportionately large number of big-ticket orders, the economy ministry said in a statement. Analysts had been projecting a more modest increase of around 1.5 percent in November.The ministry said that domestic orders increased by 1.9 percent and export orders were up by 2.2 percent. By sector, orders for semi-finished goods edged up by 0.4 percent, orders for capital goods climbed by 3.2 percent and orders for consumer goods rose by 2.1 percent. Taking October and November combined to iron out short-term fluctuations, overall orders were up 0.4 percent, with domestic orders falling by 1.5 percent but exports orders climbing by 1.8 percent, the ministry calculated.