Eurozone industrial production grew at a slower pace in October largely due to a fall in energy output, Eurostat reported Friday.
Industrial production grew only 0.1 percent in October from September when it was up by revised 0.5 percent. This was the second consecutive rise in production.
Economists had forecast output to rise by 0.2 percent. The September growth was revised down from 0.6 percent.
Production of intermediate goods rose 0.3 percent and durable consumer goods climbed 0.9 percent. Output of non-durable consumer goods increased 1.8 percent. Meanwhile, energy and capital goods fell by 1.9 percent and 0.2 percent.
On a yearly basis, growth in industrial production accelerated to 0.7 percent in October, in line with forecast, from revised 0.2 percent in September.
In EU28, industrial production increased 0.1 percent in October from the prior month and by 0.8 percent from the previous year.
The only small improvement in industrial activity seems insufficient to deter the European Central Bank from announcing a sovereign bond purchase program in January, especially taking into account the fact that inflation might turn negative in December, Peter Vanden Houte, an economist at ING Bank NV said.
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