Russia: Industrial production contracts again in December
Industrial activity contracted for a second consecutive month in December, according to the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat). Industrial output fell 1.5% annually, which followed November’s multi-year low of a 3.6% decrease. The result was driven by across-the-board declines in all sub-sectors of the index. The downturn in the manufacturing sector was particularly sharp.
The trend continued to point down, and annual average growth came in at a fifteen-month low of 0.9% in December (November: +1.0%). A month-on-month comparison revealed that industrial production gained ground, however, as output rose 0.4% over the previous month (November: -1.4% month-on-month).