According to Eurostat, total industrial production (IP) in the EU was +0.1% higher and grew by +0.2% for the Euro-zone; the EU figure is slower growth than in October but the rate is unchanged for the Euro-zone. Compared to a year earlier (November 2023), total IP declined by -1.7% in the EU and by -1.9% in the Euro-zone.
Eurostat publishes its output data using industrial production as the top aggregate and, while manufacturing makes up the bulk of this, it also includes the extraction, energy production and utilities industries. Unfortunately, they don’t provide a breakdown of IP that includes manufacturing that we can compare directly with the UK data noted above.
We can ease some of the volatility in the monthly data by using the 3-month rolling trend but only have this for total IP in the Eurostat bulletin. In the latest period (September, October and November 2024) compared to the previous 3 months (June, July and August 2024) this shows falls of -0.3% in the EU and -0.8% in the Euro-zone on a seasonally and calendar adjusted basis.
The only level of industry breakdown available in the Eurostat bulletin is for capital (or investment) goods. Compared to October 2024, output for this sub-sector grew by +0.1% in the EU and by +0.5% in the Euro-zone. Looking back over 12 months to November 2023 and we see decreases of -2.6% and -2.8% respectively; on the latter comparison, this group is the weakest of the sub-sectors of IP in both areas.
Staying with the 12-month comparison, only 10 of the EU Member States saw an increase in total IP, with the other 17 registering a decline. The strongest growth was in Malta (+13.5%), Belgium (+8.7%) and Greece (+4.8%), with the most significant declines in percentage terms in Croatia (-6.6%), Ireland (-5.6%) and Austria (-5.0%). However, it is worth noting that, compared to a year ago, output fell in each of the four major EU industrial economies – Germany (-3.3%), Italy (-1.5%), France (-1.1%) and Spain (-0.8%).
You can get the full details from the Eurostat News Release which can be downloaded from their website at https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/news/euro-indicators (15 January) or requested from MTA.