German Industrial Output Down in April

German industrial output declined in April, weighed down by a slump in the manufacturing and construction sectors, official data showed on Wednesday.

Industrial production in April declined by 2.2% from the previous month, the Economy Ministry said in a statement.

That was a steeper drop than expected: Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had been penciling in a decrease of around 1%.

In March, output had increased by 2.2% month-on-month.

Manufacturing output slipped by 2.4% in April, with output of consumer goods falling by 3.7%.

Construction slumped by 6%, while energy output was up 2.4%, the data showed.

Data released on Tuesday showed that industrial orders in Germany fell more sharply than expected in April, weighed down by a noticeable drop in foreign orders.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2012