Italian industrial orders jump 5.5 percent: official data

ROME: Industrial orders in Italy jumped 5.5 percent in December following a rise of just 0.1 percent in November, although orders were down 4.3 percent on a 12-month comparison, official figures showed on Monday.

Domestic orders rose 5.8 percent and foreign orders increased by 5.1 percent between November and December, despite a series of austerity measures in Italy and a weakening eurozone market which have hit the country's growth prospects.

The transport sector -- which includes the auto market -- was down 25.6 percent over the year, while machine tool orders rose 15.2 percent.

The government is forecasting an economic contraction of 0.4 percent this year but the Bank of Italy predicts the shrinkage will be up to 1.5 percent.