Finland: Economic growth moderates in January
Economic activity grew a working-day adjusted 1.5% in January compared to the same month a year earlier, down from the revised 2.3% rise in December (previously reported: +2.7% year-on-year). The reading was dampened in January by a slowdown in services production, which is the largest output category in Finland. Moreover, primary production, which captures the agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors, slowed down notably. Much more positively, secondary production, which includes the manufacturing and construction sectors, grew over 3.0% for the second consecutive month.
A month-on-month comparison shows that economic activity on a seasonally-adjusted basis fell 0.2% in January, contrasting 0.8% growth in December. Average year-on-year growth in economic activity was unchanged at December’s 2.0%.