Manufacturing production drops

Figures released by the Central Statistics Office show seasonally adjusted volume of industrial production for manufacturing industries for the three-month period January to March 2004 was down 5.9% on the preceding three-month period.

The “modern sector”, comprising a number of high-technology and chemical sectors, showed an annual increase in production for March 2004 of 8.1%, whereas a decrease of 1.2% was recorded in the “traditional” sector.

Industrial turnover for manufacturing industries was down 6.3% in the three month period from January to March 2004 when compared with the preceding three month period. Turnover in March 2004 was 5.4% higher than in March 2003.