German industrial production contracted more than expected in November after posting a strong rise in October, data released on Friday showed, according to dpa. The Ministry of Economics and Technology said output in Europe's biggest economy fell by 0.7 per cent in November. The ministry, however, also revised up slightly the October output figure from a 2.9-per-cent growth rate to 3 per cent. Forecasters had predicted a more modest fall of 0.2 per cent in November. Helping to drag down the production data was a 1.1-per-cent fall in output in the building industry. Output in the key manufacturing sector also slipped by 0.6 per cent. But the economics ministry said that output remained on an upwards path, raising the prospects of a positive economic performance during the final quarter of 2010. "Above all, industry output represents a key economic driving force," the ministry said. "Considering the good order book activity, it is expected this trend will continue in the coming months," it added. The ministry had announced a day earlier that German factory orders had surged by 5.2 per cent in November as foreign demand for goods from Europe's biggest economy soared. The release of the production data followed figures also published Friday by the national statistics office showing that German exports posted a 0.5-per-cent rise in November.
