Industrial production: +7 percent in one year: it even exceeds pre-covid levels

2021-09-10T08:56:41.903Z

In July 2021, Istat estimates that the seasonally adjusted index of industrial production will increase by 0.8% compared to June. On the average of the May-July period, the level of production increased by 0.6% compared to the previous three months. The monthly seasonally adjusted index shows a marked cyclical increase for capital goods (+ 1.9%) and intermediate goods (+ 1.4%), slightly more contained for consumer goods (+ 0.9%); on the other hand, it decreased in the energy sector (-1.5%). Adjusted for calendar effects, in July 2021 the overall index increased by 7% on an annual basis (22 calendar working days were compared to 23 in July 2020). Intermediate goods (+ 11.9%) and capital goods (+ 7.0%) and consumer goods (+ 5.1%) are growing particularly markedly.Energy records a slight decline (-0.6%). "Excellent data. Not so much for having recovered on the values ​​of February 2020, the last pre-lockdown month, a goal that had already been reached in both April and June, but because, for the first time, a higher value was also recorded in the comparison with the last pre-pandemic month, that is January 2020 ", says Massimiliano Dona, president of the National Consumers Union. "According to our study, in fact, in July production is not only 1.5% higher than February 2020, + 3.2% for durable consumer goods, but also in comparison with January 2020, even if by a slight + 0.1%. The only drawback is that going back two years, compared to July 2019, now the level, in the data corrected for the calendar effects, is lower by 1.9%, -2,4% also on July 2018. In short, the data are not yet exciting, but they indicate that we are no longer in the abyss of the crisis ", concludes Dona. All the main sectors of economic activity show increases on a trend basis, with the exception of mining activities. The greatest increases concern the manufacture of electrical equipment (+ 12.5%), metallurgy and the manufacture of metal products (+ 11.9%) and the manufacture of rubber and plastic materials (+9, 8%). "In July, a cyclical increase in industrial production is observed, consolidating the growth of the previous month. Even on the average of the last three months, the economic trend is favorable - comments Istat -. In trend terms, the index adjusted for calendar effects is growing,with increases spread to all industry groups, excluding energy. Compared to February 2020, the month before the start of the health emergency, in July the index level is 1.5% higher ".