According to the report from the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), industrial production fell by 0.4% in September after remaining unchanged in August (revised from +0.1%). This was the 5th drop since the beginning of 2024, but the weakest in this sequence. Economists had expected a decrease of 0.2%. Meanwhile, in the 3rd quarter, industrial production fell by 0.6% compared to the 2nd quarter.
The production of energy decreased by 3.8% compared to August, while the production in the consumer goods sector fell by 2.5%. Growth was recorded in the intermediate goods sector (+1.9%) and capital goods sector (+1.8%).
In annual terms, industrial production fell by 4.0% in September after a decline of 3.2% in August. It was the 20th decline in a row and the steepest decline since August 2023. Consensus estimates suggested a reduction of 1.0%. Among the main sectors, the largest decrease in production was recorded in the capital goods sector (-5.1%). Production also declined in the intermediate goods sector (-4.0%), consumer goods sector (-3.5%) and energy sector (-1.6%).