German industrial output slumps

German industrial output slumped in September, official data showed on Monday in another indication that the eurozone debt crisis is increasingly weighing on the continent's biggest economy. Industrial production in September contracted by 2.7 percent compared to the previous month, the economy ministry said, a much steeper decline than expected. At the same time, the ministry revised up the figures for August, saying that output had fallen by 0.4 percent rather than the 1.0 percent previously estimated. The ministry insisted the latest decline was exaggerated by the late timing of summer holidays and that looking at August and September combined, to iron-out short-term fluctuations, output contracted by just 0.2 percent compared with June and July. Figures released on Friday showed that industrial orders slumped by 4.3 percent in September owing to weak demand from other countries in the eurozone.