Industrial production in the Eurozone fell by 4.1% m/m in March

Seasonally adjusted industrial production in the Eurozone fell by 4.1% in March 2023 compared to the previous month, and by 3.6% in the EU. This is evidenced by Eurostat data, informs SteelOrbis.

Compared to March 2022, industrial production in the Eurozone decreased by 1.4%, in the EU – by 1.3%

Among the EU member states, the highest monthly increase in industrial production in March 2023 was recorded in Finland (+3%), Slovenia (2.3%), the Czech Republic (+1.7%) and Slovakia (+1.7%).

On an annual basis, according to Eurostat, in March 2023 industrial production increased in Malta (+12.5%), Denmark (+8.9%), Spain (+5.6%). At the same time, Ireland (-26.1%), Lithuania (-16.6%) and Estonia (-12.6%) showed the biggest drop in industrial production compared to March 2022.

In March 2023, energy production in the Eurozone decreased by 0.9% m/m, in annual terms it increased by 17.4%. In the European Union, the indicator decreased by 2.1% month-on-month, and on an annual basis – by 6.1%.

As GMK Center reported earlier, inflation in the Eurozone in April 2023 accelerated to 7% compared to April 2022. In March 2023, this indicator was 6.9%. At the same time, annual core inflation, which excludes energy and food costs, slowed to 5.6%, returning to February’s value (5.7% in March). The decrease of this indicator was recorded for the first time since June 2022.

Also, the European Commission improved the prognosis of the growth of European Union economy in 2023 to 1% against the estimate of 0.8% in February. EU GDP is expected to grow by 1.7% in 2024 (preliminary forecast – 1.6%). The estimate of the growth of the Eurozone economy in the current year has been revised to 1.1%, in 2024 – to 1.6%.

Inflation forecasts in the Eurozone were also revised upward compared to the winter – to 5.8% in 2023 and 2.8% in 2024.