Italian industry shows signs of picking up

Italian industry showed signs of picking up in July, when orders increased 2.9% compared to June and revenues rose 1.2% with respect to the previous month, Istat said on Thursday. The national statistics agency said that the rise in industrial revenues was driven by exports, the value of which increased 3% in July on June. Demand remains weak in recession-hit Italy but industrial revenues from the domestic market were up too, although only by 0.3% on June. However, the year-on-year figures showed sharp drops. Revenues were 5.3% lower in July than in the same month in 2011 and orders were 4.9% lower.