BERLIN (Reuters) -German industrial production rose slightly less than expected in April, posting an increase thanks to the construction sector and the strong performance of pharmaceutical products.

Production increased by 0.3% on the previous month, the federal statistical office said on Wednesday. In a Reuters poll, analysts had pointed to an increase of 0.6%.

The statistics office also revised the figure for March to a 2.1% decrease from a provisional figure of a 3.4% fall.

Despite the increase in production in April, the weakness of new orders paints a bleak picture for industry in the coming months. Industrial orders fell by 0.4% in April on the month.

The office offers more detailed data on its website.

(Reporting by Anastasiia Kozlova and Maria MartinezEditing by Miranda Murray)