FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Euro zone industrial production rose far less in September than economists had predicted, though the big economies fared well and the shortfall was due to volatility among big
Euro Zone Industrial Output Shows Weak Growth Amid Irish Volatility
Analysis of Euro Zone Industrial Output
FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Euro zone industrial production rose far less in September than economists had predicted, though the big economies fared well and the shortfall was due to volatility among big foreign companies based in Ireland for tax reasons.
Industrial production rose 0.2% on the month, well below expectations for a 0.7% rise in a Reuters poll of economists but an improvement on the 1.1% drop a month earlier.
Compared to a year earlier, output was up 1.2%, in line with the previous month but well below expectations for 2.1% in a Reuters poll.
Performance of Major Economies
Germany, the currency bloc's powerhouse, outperformed the overall euro zone with a 1.9% monthly increase and Italy expanded by 2.8%. France and Spain also grew above average.
Impact of Irish Output on Data
Output in Ireland, however, fell by 9.4% on the month, a large swing that is not unusual for the country, especially since the onset of U.S. tariffs, which have forced firms to frontload some sales.
Volatility and Economic Distortion
Given the sheer scale of earnings of the large companies headquartered in Ireland, Irish output often distorts the euro zone data, including for GDP growth, and some economists now exclude it from their calculations.
(Reporting by Balazs KoranyiEditing by Gareth Jones)
