Automotive industry output drops 80% y.o.y. in April

Within industry as a whole, production fell by 38% in manufacturing, and it dropped by 39% in mining and quarrying. The output of energy industry declined by 4.4%.

The economic effects caused by the coronavirus epidemic were significant in April, KSH notes. The outstanding drop in automotive industry output came as a result of temporary total or partial production stoppages. The volume of motor vehicle manufacturing dropped by 94%, while the manufacture of parts and accessories for motor vehicles fell by 69%

The manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products accounting for 13% of manufacturing declined by 21%. Out of the two largest groups the more significant one, the manufacture of electronic components and boards rose by 6.9%, at the same time the smaller weight carrying one, the manufacture of consumer electronics decreased by 28%.

The manufacture of food products, beverages and tobacco products, having a 16% share in manufacturing was less affected by the epidemic. The volume of production declined by 7.9% compared to the same month of 2019, with decreases measured in both sales directions. The processing and preserving meat and the production of meat products fell by 17.2%, while the manufacture of prepared animal feeds, the second most significant group, went up by 8.6%. Altogether the production declined in five groups, out of these the manufacture of beverages fell the most, by 31%.

Growth was measured only in the manufacture basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations among the subsections: the output exceeded the low base of the previous year by 19.4% in April, as both export and domestic demand developed favorably.

Out of the medium-weight representing subsections the manufacture of rubber and plastic products, and other non-metallic mineral products decreased by 25%, the manufacture of basic metals and fabricated metal products dropped by 28% year-on-year.

The manufacture of electrical equipment declined in the smallest proportion, by 5.2%.

Production drops in every region

Industrial production fell in every region compared to the same month of the previous year. The largest decrease (62%) was recorded in Western Transdanubia; volume declines were measured between 11.7% and 44% in the other regions.

Total new orders volume in the observed divisions of manufacturing fell by 42% compared to April 2019, KSH notes. New domestic orders declined by 34%, new export orders dropped by 43%. The total stock of orders at the end of April was below the previous year’s level by 4.7%.

As the Budapest Business Journal reported earlier, industrial production as a whole declined by 36.8% in April 2020 compared to the same month of the previous year. According to seasonally and working-day adjusted indices, output was 30.5% below the level recorded in March 2020.