EU: Industrial production down 0.7 pct in July

By Muhammed Ali Gurtas

ANKARA

The European Union saw a monthly fall of 0.7 percent in industrial production in July, according to the statistical office of the EU on Wednesday.

Eurostat noted that the index of industrial production -- 105.8 in July and 106.5 in June -- measures the evolution of the volume of production for industry excluding construction, based on data adjusted for calendar and seasonal effects.

"In the EU28, the decrease of 0.7 percent due to the production of non-durable consumer goods falling by 1.3 percent, durable consumer goods by 1 percent and intermediate goods by 0.6 percent while production of energy rose by 0.7 percent and capital goods by 0.6 percent," it said.

On a monthly basis, the largest decreases in industrial production were registered in Malta (down 6.3 percent), Croatia (down 5 percent), and Sweden (down 4.1 percent) in July.

Eurostat data showed that the highest month-on-month increases were seen in Denmark (up 3.6 percent), Ireland (up 2.8 percent), and Latvia (up 1.8 percent) -- among member states for which data are available.

The EU's statistical office also noted that industrial production of the 28-member bloc rose by 0.8 percent in July compared to the same month of 2017.

The highest annual hike was seen in Poland with a 7.9 percent increase while the largest decline was recorded in Malta with a 6.4 percent fall.