Fresh signs of recovery in the eurozone's industrial sector emerged with the release of figures that showed a better-than-expected 3.1 percent increase new orders in June from the previous month.
The June jump, which beat analysts' expectations for an increase of 2.1 percent, followed on the heals of a revised 0.1 percent decline in new orders in May, data published by the European Union's Eurostat statistics agency showed.
On a 12-month basis, industrial new orders surged 4.9 percent in May topping expectations for a 1.3 percent increase and following on the heals of a revised 3.5 percent drop in May.
In the 25 nation EU, industrial new orders increased 2.4 percent in June over one month and 5.2 percent over one year
In the eurozone, Portugal saw the strongest growth in new orders with a 5.5 percent increase from May, followed by Ireland with 5.2 percent and Germany with 3.1 percent.
On a sector basis, the eurozone transport equipment industry saw a 5.5 percent increase in new orders in May compared with June followed by electrical and electronic equipment at 4.1 percent and manufacturing machinery and equipment at 2.6 percent.
By: N. Peter Kramer
