Spain industrial output plunges 7.0pc
Thursday, 12 January 2012
MADRID, Jan 11 (AFP): Spain's industrial output plunged by 7.0 per cent in November compared to a year earlier, its biggest drop in more than two years, official data showed Wednesday.
The figure from the National Statistics Institute gave a fresh warning sign of a worsening of the economy in Spain, which has seen unemployment soar to 21.5 per cent.
Economists have warned that Spain may have already entered a recession, with a likely contraction in the last quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012.
The official growth forecast for 2011 stands at 0.8 per cent.
The fall in production accelerated in November after a decline of 4.2 per cent in October, according to Wednesday's figures.
"All the industrial sectors displayed negative year-on-year rates," the institute said in a statement.
The fall in production was sharpest in the consumer goods sector, at 16.3 per cent. Energy fell 5.2 per cent.
Industrial production fell 1.4 per cent on average from January to November compared to the same period a year earlier, the figures showed.
The November figure was the worst since October 2009 when output fell 9.1 per cent during the first wave of the economic crisis. Production recovered to show growth of 0.8 per cent in 2010.
The figure from the National Statistics Institute gave a fresh warning sign of a worsening of the economy in Spain, which has seen unemployment soar to 21.5 per cent.
Economists have warned that Spain may have already entered a recession, with a likely contraction in the last quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012.
The official growth forecast for 2011 stands at 0.8 per cent.
The fall in production accelerated in November after a decline of 4.2 per cent in October, according to Wednesday's figures.
"All the industrial sectors displayed negative year-on-year rates," the institute said in a statement.
The fall in production was sharpest in the consumer goods sector, at 16.3 per cent. Energy fell 5.2 per cent.
Industrial production fell 1.4 per cent on average from January to November compared to the same period a year earlier, the figures showed.
The November figure was the worst since October 2009 when output fell 9.1 per cent during the first wave of the economic crisis. Production recovered to show growth of 0.8 per cent in 2010.