Italy: Industrial production contracts in January
Industrial output contracted 1.9% in January on a month-on-month, seasonally adjusted basis, contrasting December’s revised 2.1% expansion (previously reported: +1.6% month-on-month). In January the National Statistical Institute re-based its industrial production index, moving the base from 2010 to 2015. The reading represented a sharper contraction than analysts’ expectations of a 0.7% decease. It came on the back of broad-based contractions: The manufacturing, mining and quarrying and electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning sub-sectors contracted. However, within the manufacturing sector, production in the textile, clothing, leather and accessories industries expanded.
On an annual basis, industrial production expanded by a strong working-day adjusted 4.0% in January, decelerating from December’s 5.4% rise. Meanwhile, annual average growth in industrial output rose to a multi-year high of 4.0% in January, above December’s 3.7%.