5 JANUARY 2012

Order books in the Euro area leaped to +1.8% in October month-on-month from the previous month gap (-7.8%) according to Eurostat latest figures, lifted by Capital Goods +1.6% surge (from -8.1%) as export markets demand for aerospace equipment and the automobile industry rebounded substantially. New orders of Intermediate Goods therefore picked up to -0.2% (from -3.3%) while Durable Consumer Goods contracted further and fell -2.3%, the third drop, due to weak internal demand hammered by a series of austerity measures. Inversely, new orders of Non Durable Consumer Goods rose to -0.5% (from -2.4%) ahead of the Christmas season.

Despite the single currency region's chaotic environment over the debt crisis, external demand lifted the region's economic heavy weight momentum: export-led Germany's order books index  turned positive to +5.5% (from-4.6%) and France's rose to -0.3% (from -6.8%). Italy's index  climbed to -1.1% (from -9.2%) and Spain's to -2.2% (from -5.4%).

The UK's index recovered as well and rose to +2.9% (from -1%). Inversely, east European member states new order index contracted and including in Poland, the largest economy, to -2.9% (from +5.1%) along with the Czech Republic's -0.8% (from +4.8%). Dynamic Nordic states followed a similar trend with the exception of Sweden‘s, where new orders rose to -0.8% (from -2.5%). 

Bailed-out countries performed unevenly : new orders in Ireland dipped -3% (from +3%), in Portugal the index improved to -3.6% (from -4.9%) and in Greece to -2.3% (from -4.9%).

In one year, new orders rose +1.6% equally to the previous month annual performance, but except for Capital Goods +2.7% increase (from +1%) all majors were impacted negatively. New orders of Intermediate Goods moved down to +1.4% (from +2.9%), while Durable Consumer Goods dropped -4.9% (from +1.9%). Non Durable Consumer Goods order index dipped -1% (from +0.7%).  In Germany, new orders rose twofold to +7.5%, while inversely Spain's dipped to -3.4% (from +3.4%). In Italy, new orders improved to -3.8%  (from -4.3%) but stayed in negative territory. The UK's new order index leaped to +9.7% (from -2.7%).