"Hungary's December industrial output fell 5.7% month-on-month according to data adjusted for workdays and seasonal changes, the Central Statistics Office (KSH) reported on Friday.Compared with December 2008, the wda output figure shows a 1.4% decline. Overall in 2009, Hungary's industrial sector produced 17.7% less than in the previous year.
After a setback in November, poor industrial performance in December comes as unwelcome news, considering a promising start in the early fall. At this point it seems hopes for a rising trend have been completely disappointed.
Moreover the new data raise concerns over Hungary's response to the economic growth cycle that is slowly beginning to develop in Western Europe. Foreign trade figures suggest exporters in Hungary are performing quite well in this regard, pointing to meager domestic demand as the potential culprit behind sluggish industrial trends.
However, the latest stats should be taken with a pinch of salt as December has traditionally been one of the least reliable months statistically. Despite seasonal adjustments, holidays are a distorting factor; factory downtime is often longer than the days marked as bank holidays in the calendar. If confidence indices are to be believed, recovery may continue on a minor scale.
That said, 2009 was one of the bleakest years for Hnugary's industrial sector. Although the greatest sudden setback took place back in 2008, the industrial sector was unable to recover from this low level throughout the year 2009, causing average production volume to plummet 17.7% below the previous year's standard."
Source: Portfolio Online Financial Journal
05.02.2010