Rapid Report. Energy and industry. Extract from "Industrial Trends - January 1993" Recession worsens.

Abstract

The latest (October 1992) figures for Industri-al production in the European Community (EUR 12) reveal a worsening of the recession. In the capital goods industries in particular, pro-duction ha• continued to fall. The Index of lndustrlalproduction (NACE 1-4), adjusted for the number of working days, stood at 120.0 (1985 = 100) for the Community as a whole in October, 1.6 % down on the previous October's figure. For the capital goods industries, the index fell 4.2 %, gi.ving a seasonally-adjusted production Index for the month of 113.0, whe-reas in January it had stood at 115.0. The seasonally-adjusted EC production index fell by 1.0 % in the past three months (August, Sep-tember and October) compared with the pre-vious three months (May. June and July). 0% The seasonally-adjusted figures for industrial output in the EC Member States are as follows (rate of change for the past three months compared with the previous three months, with the capital goods industries in brackets): Italy -3.3 % (-2. 1 %), Nether-lands -1.6 % (-2.0 %), Belgium -1.2 % (estimated) (+ 1.3 %), Denmark -0. 7 (-1.8 %), Germany (West) -0. 7 % (-1.1 %), Spain -0.3 % (estimated) (+0.9 %). Greece +0,0 % (-5.9 %), France +0.3 % (+0.4 %). Uni-ted Kingdom +1.2 % (+0.9 %), Ireland +3.8 % (esti-mated) (+3.4 %). Production is therefore falling In very many Member States. Manuscript completed on = 18.01.1993 EUR12 Industrial Production Ma nufactu ring 118 116 11.4 112 110 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 In the USA. industrial production stagnated at 0.0 % (rate of change for the past .three months compared with the previous three months): no current data are available for Japan. The sharp fall in car manufacturtng (NACE 35) in the EC was particularly noticeable, 4.0 % down for the past three months compared with the previous three months.