German orders up 2.4 percent in February

BERLIN — Official data show that industrial orders in Germany, Europe's biggest economy, were up 2.4 percent on the month in February, their second consecutive healthy rise.

The Economy Ministry said Wednesday that demand was led by orders for so-called investment goods such as machinery, which were up 4.5 percent compared with January.

February's overall increase followed a month-on-month rise in January of 3.1 percent. That was revised upward from the initial reading of 2.9 percent.

Germany has seen an impressive recovery over the past year as surging exports into a recovering global economy were accompanied by signs of improving domestic demand.

In February, orders from inside Germany rose by 2.6 percent compared with January and orders from abroad increased by 2.3 percent.