Eurozone industrial production up by 1% in August

Eurozone industrial production rose by 1.0 percent on a monthly basis in August, compared with a 1.0-percent decrease in July, European Union (EU) statistics office Eurostat said Monday. In the wider 28-member EU, industrial production also posted a monthly expansion of 0.5 percent in August, compared with a 0.6-percent decline in July, Eurostat data showed. The growing industrial output in both areas was attributed to increased production of capital goods, which increased by 0.9 percent in the euro area and by 0.8 percent in the EU. In the euro area, production of durable consumer goods increased by 0.8 percent. Whereas the EU saw a 0.9-percent decrease in the same category. The production of energy dropped by 1.6 percent in the euro area and by 1.2 percent in the EU. Among the EU member states for which data are available, industrial production declined in 13 countries and increased in 9. It rose by 1.8 percent in Europe's largest economy Germany, according to Eurostat. The highest increases were registered in Portugal, at 8.2 percent and Malta at 7.2 percent, while the largest decreases were in Estonia at 3.5 percent and Sweden at 2.8 percent.