Source:Eurostat

13 MAY 2011

Industrial output in the Euro area dipped -0.2% in March month-on-month (-0.3% in the EU 27), the region's first slow down in the last six months following February's rebound after the January freeze. With the exception of Intermediate Goods and Durable Consumer Goods unchanged, each Capital Goods and Non Durable Consumer Goods moved into negative territories respectively to -0.9% and -0.7% pushed down overwhelmingly by the automobile industry's production pause along with transport equipment, the region's best of class, and households weak demand for food and clothing.  The production of energy dropped -0.7%, the first significant decline due to lesser industrial demand.

Among the Euro area's major economic weights besides France, output moved down by more than one percentage point to +0.4% in Germany and equally in Italy to +0.5%. In  Spain, production slid -1% . Estonia, Slovakia, and Slovenia, the region's newest member states performed inversely with output rising respectively +2.8%, +1.1% and +2.2%. Poland, eastern Europe's largest economy recorded its first production drop since last November and dipped -0.4%. Romania's output rescinded -0.8%. In the UK, a non Euro area member state and the Union‘s major heavy weight along with the Euro four, output stayed nearly unchanged or +0.2%.

Nordic states, often indicators of an economic rebound or inversely, saw output turn negative: in Finland -1.1%, in Sweden -0.1%, and in Denmark -1.7%.  

In one year, overall output moved down to +5.2% in the Euro area and +4.6% in the EU 27 impacted by lesser Intermediate Goods and Capital Goods output, respectively down to +7.5% and +10.5%, their first significant slow down since October. The production of energy stayed in negative territories and dipped -2.2%.

Output of Durable Consumer Goods fell to +2.3% while Non Durable Consumer Goods decreased by 0.6%. In Germany, output slowed down to +10.9%, the country's slowest performance since last October. Inversely, Italy's rose to +3.1% while Spain's dropped to -0.9%.  Estonia's newly Euro area member state fuelled output, up +32.7%.