Decline of European Industrial Production in March by One Percent

Industrial production in the European Union (EU) and the eurozone fell by one percent year-on-year in March, while it slightly increased on a monthly basis, according to data released by Eurostat on Wednesday.

Compared to March last year, the production of durable consumer goods saw the most significant decline, falling by 8.3 percent in the eurozone and 7.5 percent in the EU. A notable decline was also recorded in the sector of non-durable goods for general consumption, down by 7.0 percent in the eurozone and 5.1 percent in the EU, while energy production fell by 3.5 percent in the eurozone and 2.6 percent in the Union.

The industry of intermediate goods recorded the mildest decline, at 2.3 percent in the eurozone and 2.2 percent in the EU compared to March last year. The only sector that saw production growth was the capital goods industry, which increased by 1.8 percent in the eurozone and 1.5 percent in the EU.

Finland with the strongest annual decline

Among the EU countries for which Eurostat had data, Finland recorded the strongest annual decline in production, at 7.7 percent. Bulgaria and Austria followed with declines of 7.6 and 7.0 percent, respectively. In Croatia, industrial production in March fell by 5.0 percent compared to the same month last year.

Conversely, the strongest production increase was in Ireland, at 37 percent compared to March last year. However, Eurostat notes that this country revised its methodology for seasonal adjustment of industrial production data.

Cyprus and Romania followed, with increases of 8.5 and 3.5 percent, respectively.

Slight monthly increase in industrial production

Compared to February, industrial production in the EU increased by 0.2 percent in March, and by 0.6 percent in the eurozone.

Among the countries for which Eurostat had data, industrial production in Ireland saw the highest monthly increase in March, at 12.8 percent. Belgium and Luxembourg followed with increases of 6.8 and 4.5 percent, respectively.

In Croatia, industrial production in March increased by 1.5 percent, according to seasonally and calendar-adjusted data, following a strong decline of 4.6 percent in February. The countries closest to this growth were Sweden with 1.4 percent and Malta with 1.6 percent.

The strongest decline in industrial production in March was recorded by Slovenia, at 5.9 percent. Poland and Denmark followed with declines of 5.1 and 4.3 percent.