German industrial output fell for a second consecutive month in October, sending a sign of weak recovery from Europe's largest economy, official data showed on Monday.
In calendar and seasonally-adjusted terms, industrial output dropped by 1.2 percent in October, compared with the previous month, when the output fell by 0.7 percent, the German Federal Economy Ministry said.
The production of investment goods dropped by 3 percent, construction slid by 1.7 percent, energy by 1.9 percent and consumer items by 0.8 percent, according to the data released today.
"The manufacturing sector saw a weak start in the final quarter," the ministry said in a statement.
Last week, data from the ministry showed that factory orders in October fell by 2.2 percent, compared with a month earlier.
The German economy expanded by 0.3 percent in the third quarter, following a growth of 0.7 percent in the second and a stagnation during the first three months.
Data from the German Federal Statistical Office on Monday showed that German trade surplus narrowed in October, due to a higher growth rate of imports than exports.
The German central bank Deutsche Bank forecast last week that the German economy would grow by 0.5 percent in 2013 and by 1.7 percent in 2014.