Industrial production in the euro area and the EU grew by 2.6% m/m in December

Industrial production in the euro area and the European Union, adjusted for seasonal changes, increased by 2.6% in December 2023 compared to the previous month. Compared to December 2022, industrial production in the euro area and the EU increased by 1.2%. This is evidenced by Eurostat data.

Among the EU member states, the highest monthly growth in industrial production in December was recorded in Ireland (+23.5%), the Netherlands (+6.6%) and Denmark (+5.6%). The largest declines were observed in Slovenia (-7.4%), Lithuania (-1.5%), and Finland (-2.7%).

According to Eurostat, in December 2023, industrial production grew the most in Ireland (+44.7%), Denmark (+6.7%) and Malta (+5%). At the same time, Slovenia (-10.2%), Hungary (-8.7%) and Bulgaria (-6.9%) showed the largest drop in industrial production compared to December 2022.

In December 2023, energy production in the euro area increased by 0.3% m/m, while in annual terms it decreased by 1.7%. In the EU, energy production in the same period increased by 0.4% m/m, and fell by 1.3% compared to December 2022.

In 2023, industrial production decreased by 2.4% in the euro area and by 2% in the EU.

Inflation in the euro area in December 2023 increased by 2.9% y/y, accelerating the growth rate compared to 2.4% in November. Thus, inflation in Europe increased for the first time since April 2023.

As GMK Center reported earlier, the European Commission has downgraded its growth forecast for the eurozone economy in 2023 and 2024, as inflation is still too high, consumer spending is declining, and Germany, the region’s largest economy, is slipping into recession.