Eurozone industrial production edges lower, misses forecasts

Eurozone industrial production unexpectedly ticked lower in April, official data showed on Thursday.

According to Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, seasonally-adjusted industrial production eased 0.1% in the single currency bloc, compared to an 0.5% improvement in March. Analysts had been expecting a small 0.2% uplift.

Across the wider EU, industrial production increased 0.5%.

The biggest faller in both areas was intermediate goods, which saw output fall 0.2% in the EU and 0.4% in the Eurozone.

Among member states, Germany - Europe’s largest economy - reported a 0.3% increase in industrial production. Output rose 0.6% in France but was flat in Spain and down 1% in Italy.

Year-on-year, industrial production fell by 3% in the Eurozone - well above analyst expectations for a 1.9% decline - and 2% in the wider bloc.

Leo Barincou, senior economist at Oxford Economics, said March’s figure had benefited from a marked rebound in Ireland’s “volatile” industrial figures. In contrast, Irish industrial output fell 3.4% in April.

Overall, he continued: “Despite today’s lacklustre print, we still think [Europe's] industrial sector hit a trough in the first quarter and will register sustained growth soon. In the near term, industry will benefit from a turning inventory cycle as companies rebuild their inventories. Gradual monetary loosening will also be a major tailwind.”