23/09/2005 (Agence Europe) - The euro-zone industrial new orders index fell by 1.6% in July 2005 compared to June 2005. The index rose by 3.1% in June and decreased by 0.1% in May. EU25 new orders fell 0.7% in July after a rise of 2.5% in June and a fall of 0.2% in May. In July 2005 compared to July 2004, industrial new orders grew by 1.2% in the euro-zone and by 1.8% in the EU25. In July 2005 compared to June 2005, basic metals and fabricated metal products grew by 2.6% in the euro-zone and by 3.7% in the EU25. Manufacturing of machinery and equipment rose by 1.3% and 3.2% respectively. Textiles and textile products gained 0.6% in the EU25. Chemicals and chemical products decreased by 0.3% in the euro-zone but increased by 0.4% in the EU25. Electrical and electronic equipment fell by 1.1% in the euro-zone and by 0.8% in the EU25. Transport equipment dropped by 5.2% and 3.5% respectively. In July 2005, total manufacturing working on orders rose in six Member States and fell in ten. Increases were registered in Latvia (+10.0%), Sweden (+5.9%), Germany (+3.8%), Netherlands (+2.7%), Poland (+2.0%) and Slovakia (+1.7%). The largest falls were recorded in Denmark (-11.3%), the Czech Republic (-6.0%) and Portugal (-3.4%). In July 2005 compared to July 2004, machinery and equipment grew by 2.7% in the euro-zone and by 3.7% in the EU25. Total annual manufacturing working on orders rose in July in nine Member States and fell in seven. The highest rises were recorded in Latvia (+47.4%), Hungary (+19.2%), Lithuania (+10.3%) and Estonia (+8.9%). The largest decreases were registered in Belgium (-12.1%), Denmark (-6.1%), Portugal (-4.5%) and France (-3.8%).