Based on working day-adjusted data, production grew by 6.7% in January. Output – again according to the seasonally and working day-adjusted index – was above the previous month’s level by 1.5%.
The volume of industrial exports exceeded the level of the previous year by 4.9%. Within export sales in manufacturing, the exports of transport equipment (representing 35% of the total) rose by 3.4%. In the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products – the other significant subsection, accounting for 15% of manufacturing exports – the export volume increased by 7.9%.
Industrial domestic sales edged up by 0.4%, within which the domestic sales of manufacturing were 16.8% higher year-on-year.
Within industry, production rose by 8.4% in manufacturing – representing a decisive weight (95%) – and by 94% in mining and quarrying (carrying little weight).
The output of the energy industry (electricity, gas, steam and air-conditioning supply) fell by 18.1%, mainly as a result of much warmer weather compared with the previous year (according to the Hungarian Meteorological Service, the January 2018 average temperature was 8.5 degrees C higher than the January 2017 average).
The production of transport equipment – representing 29% of manufacturing output – rose year-on-year by 5.2%. The manufacture of parts and accessories for motor vehicles went up by 10.5%, while the manufacture of motor vehicles declined by 0.9%.
The manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products – accounting for 12% of manufacturing – grew by 6.7%. The more significant of the two largest groups, the manufacture of communication equipment, increased by 51%, while the manufacture of consumer electronics dropped by 4.9%.
The manufacture of food products, beverages and tobacco products – accounting for 10% of manufacturing – was 9.8% above the low base level of the same month of the previous year.
The manufacture of basic metals and fabricated metal products rose by 16.1%, while the manufacture of rubber and plastics products, and other non-metallic mineral products, went up by 24.5%, owing to increases in both domestic and export demand.
Another big output increase was seen in pharmaceuticals, at 29.0%.
Along with a 3.0% increase in the number of employees, the labor productivity of industrial enterprises with five or more employees was 3.7% higher in January 2018 than in the same month of the previous year.
Industrial output rose in every region of Hungary year-on-year, the most by 14.2% in Southern Transdanubia, and the least by 3.0% in the Northern Great Plain.
The volume of total new orders in the observed subsections of manufacturing increased by 12% compared to the same month of 2017. The volume of new domestic orders grew by 22%, while new export orders rose by 10.7%. The volume of orders was below the level of January 2017 by 6.2%.
A first estimate of industrial output figures for February 2018 will be published by the KSH on April 6.
Producing journalism that is worthy of the name is a costly business. For over 30 years, the publishers, editors and reporters of the Budapest Business Journal have striven to bring you business news that works, information that you can trust, that is factual, accurate and presented without fear or favor.Newspaper organizations across the globe have struggled to find a business model that allows them to continue to excel, without compromising their ability to perform. Most recently, some have experimented with the idea of involving their most important stakeholders, their readers.
We would like to offer that same opportunity to our readers. We would like to invite you to help us deliver the quality business journalism you require. Hit our Support the BBJ button and you can choose the how much and how often you send us your contributions.
