CSO: Marginal fall in production levels

THERE has been a marginal year-on-year fall in production levels in June among Ireland’s manufacturing industries.

Latest monthly Central Statistics Office (CSO) data published yesterday, shows that production levels fell by 0.6% during the month, when compared to the same month last year.

The monthly change showed a 0.3% increase; back to positive territory following May’s slip of 0.1% from April.

The June data also showed continued growth for the “traditional” sector, where production was up by 1.1% year-on-year.

That increase followed on from an annualised climb of 4.4% in May and a 1.4% rise in April.

However, the “modern” sector as it is so-called, which comprises a number of hi-tech and chemical sub-sectors showed an annualised decline in production levels of 1.2% in June.

This followed a year-on-year fall, for this sector, of 1.5% in May.

Yesterday’s update from the CSO also showed little change in the volume of production for the second quarter of the year, as a whole, with a climb of just 0.1% recorded when compared to the first quarter.

On a year-on-year basis, however, second quarter production was up by a more healthy 1.8%.

“However, industrial sector value added — which contributes to Irish GDP — has been somewhat stronger than production in the recent quarter,” according to Davy Stockbrokers chief economist, Conall MacCoille.

“The seasonally adjusted industrial turnover index for manufacturing industries was 0.6% higher in June 2011 when compared with June 2010,” the CSO added.