The pace of rising industrial production across the 16 eurozone countries slowed in September despite marking a fifth monthly gain in a row, official statistics showed yesterday.
Industrial production across the eurozone rose by 0.3 percent in September, as against 0.9 percent in August, and fell by 12.9 percent on an annual basis, compared to 15.4 percent last time out, the EU Eurostat agency’s data showed.
The setback could be seen in detailed figures showing a slump in the production of durable consumer goods such as fridges and TVs, which fell 6.0 percent in September after a revised 5.2 percent eurozone rise in August.
Production of energy also contracted sharply across the continental engine behind Europe’s economy, showing a 2.1 percent drop in September after rising in August month-to-month.
Analyst Clemente De Lucia of BNP-Paribas highlighted a marked rise in German output against heavy contraction in Italy, pointing to seasonal distortions, as well as the influence of car incentive schemes and a rebound in global demand.
“To avoid the monthly volatility a better gauge of momentum is the three-month rate of change of industrial production, which signal that industrial production is on an upward trend,” he said.
“Given the high correlation between industrial production and gross domestic product growth, we can expect GDP to have increased by around 0.5-0.6 percent in the third quarter” compared to the April-June period, he said.
Rises were recorded in 11 countries, the highest seen in Ireland, at 11.2 percent — clawing back some of the 16.7 percent collapse seen there between July and August.
RSS