German factory orders unexpectedly declined in June as demand for investment goods from within the eurozone slumped in the run-up to Britain’s referendum on European Union membership. Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, fell 0.4% from May, when they rose a revised 0.1%, data from the economy ministry in Berlin showed on Friday. That’s the third consecutive month demand remained below economists’ estimates. The median in a Bloomberg survey was for an increase of 0.5%. Orders dropped 3.1% from a year earlier. Company executives are less optimistic, with Siemens chief Joe Kaeser warning on Thursday that political uncertainty in countries like the UK threatens to damp orders and investment.
