ZAGREB, January 29, 2018 - Industrial production in Croatia in December 2017 dropped by 2.5% on the year for the second consecutive month and the decline was greater than in November, according to figures provided by the national statistical office (DZS).
Industrial output in December grew 1.6% from November while compared to December 2016 it dropped by 2.5%. December was the second consecutive month to see an annual decline in industrial output after in November it dropped by 1.6%.
The December decline was higher than predicted. Four analysts polled by Hina had forecast an average decrease in industrial production of 1.4%, with their estimates ranging from an increase of 1.2% to a 4% decrease.
The production of durable consumer goods dropped the most, by 22.5%. The production of capital goods dropped by 10.6% while the production of non-durable consumer goods went down by 5.2%. The output of intermediary products grew 4.1% and that of energy rose 2.6%.
"The annual decrease is partly due to the fact that in December 2016 a two-digit growth of 14.9% was recorded," Raiffeisenbank Austria (RBA) analysts said in a comment on the latest statistical report.
Throughout 2017 industrial output rose at a rate of 1.9%, and last year was the fourth consecutive year industrial output has been going albeit at a slower pace than in 2016, when it rose 5%.
The production of intermediary good in 2017 rose 6.3% on the year, while the production of non-durable consumer goods grew 1.2%. On the other hand, the production of capital goods dropped 2.1% while the production of durable consumer goods slid by 1.5%.
Industrial output went down three times on the year in 2017. In April, it went down 0.4% due to disruption caused by the Agrokor crisis, and this was the first decline in industrial output after more than two years of uninterrupted growth. Production then grew for six months, and in the last two months of last year it fell.
"Despite annual declines in April, November and December, solid growth rates in other months contributed to a positive annual growth rate for the fourth year in a row," said RBA analysts.
They said that they expected moderate growth rates to continue this year, owing primarily to the continued growth of foreign demand. "We expect domestic demand to contribute positively as well," said the analysts.
