Markitâ??s manufacturing index for Euroland dropped well below the break-even reading of 50 in October. The data for Italy plunged five points to 43.3, the biggest drop since the survey began in the 1990s.
â??Italy is a serious concern. Total and export new orders collapsed,â? said Francois Cabau from Barclays Capital. Italyâ??s economy is almost certainly in a double-dip recession already, exacerbating the countryâ??s fragile debt dynamics.
