Eurozone industrial production edges lower, misses forecasts

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.”