Lithuania: Industrial output rebounds in February
Industrial production rose 2.4% year-on-year in February, rebounding from January’s revised 4.1% contraction (previously reported: -3.2% year-on-year). That said, if taking the leap-year extra day into account, industrial output ticked up just 0.1% yoy in February.
February’s rebound was largely driven by an upturn in the all-important manufacturing sector following a marked contraction at the outset of the year. Similarly, activity in the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply sector bounced back in February, while the mining sector output rose for a fourth month running in the same period, although the rate of output growth was considerably softer than in January. Lastly, activity in the water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities sector remained healthy in the month.
On a month-on-month basis, industrial output fell 0.4% in seasonally- and working-day adjusted terms in February, marking the third consecutive drop, albeit softening slightly from January’s 1.7% decrease. Meanwhile, annual average growth in industrial production slumped to a near three-five low of 2.7% in February (January: 3.0%).