BRUSSELS (AP) -- New orders for manufacturers in the 16 nations that use the euro fell 35.5 percent in April from a year earlier, the EU statistical agency Eurostat said Thursday -- the sharpest drop so far this year.
Worst hit were orders for tools, parts and components sold on to other manufacturers, down nearly 40 percent. Orders for cars and home appliances fell by more than a quarter.
Orders in Germany, the European Union's largest economy fell 39.5 percent
Eurostat said euro-zone orders slipped 1 percent from March. Orders across the entire 27-nation EU in April fell 35 percent from the same month last year and 0.5 percent compared to March.