Adjusted for the number of workdays, output was up 8.1%, nearly level with the 8.2% increase in February. In a month-on-month comparison, seasonally, and workday, adjusted output increased 0.4%, following a 1.4% rise in February. A second reading of the data will be published on May 14.

Erste senior analyst Gergely Gábler said the strong performance of the industrial sector in March was likely to prompt an upward revision in the bank’s projection for full-year growth of 5.5%. K&H Bank chief analyst Dávid Németh said the data show the support of the recovery in Western Europe, noting that 60% of industrial output is exported.