Eurozone industrial production drops again in March - ING

Bert Colijn, Senior Economist at ING, notes that the Eurozone’s industrial production fell by -0.1% MoM in March, just like in February as warm weather caused industrial production to disappoint in 1Q, but a rebound is to be expected in 2Q.

Key Quotes

“Eurozone industrial production suffered from the warm weather in 1Q as energy production dropped significantly in February and March, by -4.9% and -3.2% MoM respectively. Other than energy, all other components saw growth in production in March, indicating that growth in industry is becoming more broad-based. On an annual basis, growth increased from 1.4% to 1.9% in March, which is set to rise further in the months ahead. By country, especially France grew strongly, Italy also posted growth, while other countries experienced declines.”

“Even though industrial production continues to disappoint analysts, it is likely that this quarter will be better. Businesses are also indicating that order books have been filling up quickly and backlogs of work are increasing. Stronger industrial production in 2Q will underpin the continued Eurozone expansion. While industrial output was disappointing in 1Q, growth was still 0.5% QoQ, indicating that growth will likely remain robust in the current quarter.”