Eurozone Industrial Production Declines

(RTTNews) - Eurozone industrial production logged a monthly fall in August, reflecting the uncertainty surrounding the global trade environment.

Industrial output dropped 1.2 percent month-on-month, in contrast to the 0.5 percent increase in July, Eurostat said Wednesday. However, the decline was less severe than the forecast of 1.6 percent.

The slump was primarily due to the contraction in capital and durable consumer goods production. Capital goods output decreased 2.2 percent and output of durable consumer goods eased 1.6 percent.

Production of intermediate and energy fell 0.2 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively. In contrast, non-durable consumer goods output moved up 0.1 percent.

Annual growth in industrial production softened to 1.1 percent from 2.0 percent in July.

Data serves as a warning sign that the economy is not accelerating despite business confidence improving, ING economist Bert Colijn said.

For the third quarter, manufacturing is unlikely to have contributed positively to GDP growth, keeping expectations for growth very muted, the economist added.

Industrial production in the EU27 dropped 1.0 percent in August from July but increased 1.1 percent from the last year.

Among member states, the largest monthly decreases were recorded in Germany, Greece and Austria. Meanwhile, Ireland, Luxembourg and Sweden reported the largest growth.