Romania�s industrial production shrinks 17.5% in December

Compared to November, Romania’s industrial production dropped 8.6% in December, according to the Statistical Office of the European Communities.

According to Eurostat, the industrial production fell in December in all Member States for which data are available. The largest decreases were observed in Estonia – 20.7%, Spain – 19.6%, Sweden – 18%, Romania and Slovenia registering the same reduction of industrial production of 17.5% versus December 2007.

On an annual basis, the biggest reduction was observed in the category of intermediate goods – 19.2% in EU and by 20.3% in euro area, followed by durable consumer goods production that fell 14.1% in EU and 14.5% in euro area in December 2008.

The energy production shrank by 3.3% in both areas.

National Institute of Statistics (INS) said earlier today that industrial production fell in December 2008 by 18% compared to a year-ago period and by 19.2% compared to November 2008.