Europe's industrial output rises significantly in March

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Industrial production in Europe bettered significantly in March compared to last year, EU's statistical authority said on Thursday.

The March figure surged 10.9% year-on-year in the eurozone and 11% in the EU, Eurostat said in a statement.

Among member states for which data is available, Italy posted the largest improvement with an annual rise of 37.7%. It was followed by Slovakia with 24.5%, and Hungary and Poland both with 16.3%.

The steepest declines in the reading were in Malta and Finland at 2.8% and 2.2%, respectively, during the same period.

The EU saw a 34.4% rise in production of durable consumer goods, 15.9% in capital goods, 13.4% in intermediate goods and 2.7% in energy.

On a monthly basis, industrial output climbed slightly by 0.1% in the eurozone and 0.6% in the EU member countries in March.

Meanwhile, the Turkish Statistical Institute announced on Tuesday that Turkey's industrial output improved by 0.7% month-on-month in March and 16.6% annually.