In relation to the previous month, the industrial production (seasonally adjusted) was stable (0,1%) in October 2005. In comparison with the months of 2004, when the production was growing, the results were the following: growth by 0.4% in relation to October of the previous year and growth by 3.4% in the accumulated index January-October 2005. The annualized rate, accumulated index of the last twelve months (4.1%), registered deceleration compared to the result of September (4.4%). The information comes from the Monthly Industrial Survey, carried out by IBGE in all the Country.

The slight variation observed in the monthly indicator of October 2005 (0.1%), after a decrease of 2.3% in September, resulted from the expansion in thirteen among twenty-three industrial groups with seasonally adjusted series. The positive highlights were electrical machines, materials and equipment (2.5%), petroleum refining and alcohol production (0.9%) and other chemical products (0.8%). Among the industries with decrease, the main results came from electronic material and communication equipment (-6.7%) and textiles (-2.7%).

Still in the comparison with the immediately previous month, the categories of use had the following results: -3.9% for capital goods, 0.1% for intermediate goods, 2.8% for durable consumer goods and 0.5% for semi durable and non-durable consumer goods. The segment of capital goods had reduction after two months of growth, when it accumulated expansion of 4.8% (September 05/July 05). The other categories broke the downward trend observed in September, especially durable consumer goods, with expansion of 2.8% after three negative results, a period in which it accumulated a decrease of 17.3% (September 05/June 05).

In relation to October 2004, industrial production increased by 0.4%. This positive result was influenced by mining and quarrying (10.8%), once manufacturing industry fell by 0.2%. It is worth pointing out that this slight change is a consequence of two factors. A declining trend, observed in the second semester of 2005 and the base of comparison of the last months of 2004, when the industrial sector showed a growing trend. The positive impact in the overall index of mining and quarrying was sustained by the performance of the items iron ores and petroleum. Other relevant contributions came from office machines and computer equipment (46.6%), pharmaceuticals (13.2%) and electrical machines, equipment and materials (12.9%). On the other hand, among the industries that had decrease in production, machines and equipment (-7.8%) was the one that most influenced the overall rate.

Still in the comparison October 05/ October 04, the indexes by categories of use sustained positive results in three among four categories. Durable consumer goods (2.7%), capital goods (2.1%) and semi durable and non-durable consumer goods (1.6%) increased above the national average (0.3%), while intermediate goods (-0.6%), the most relevant category in industry, had the second consecutive negative result.

The sector of durable consumer goods continued growing, influenced positively by the manufacturing of cars (4.4%) and mobile telephones (27.4%), since the total of household appliances fell by 7.3%. In the segment capital goods, the sub sectors that most stood out were electricity equipment (52.2%), construction equipment (34.7%), transportation equipment (3.0%) and capital goods for mixed use (1.9%). On the other hand, capital goods for industrial use (-10.0%) and agriculture capital goods (-42.2%) influenced negatively. The production of semi durable and non-durable consumer goods had positive rates in all the sub sectors, with the exception of semi durable (-7.6%). In this category of use, the main positive impact came from other non-durable (5.5%), mainly due to the influence of the items magazines and remedies. The negative performance of intermediate goods was influenced by the unfavorable behavior of several of its sub sectors, especially elaborated industrial inputs (-1.9%) and pieces and accessories for industrial transport equipment (-3.5%), which counteracted the positive impact observed in basic industrial inputs (10.3%) and basic fuels and lubricants (12.9%). It is worth to point out the negative indexes of inputs for construction (-1.6%) and packaging (-3.9%), both having fallen for the last four months.

In the index accumulated in the year (January to October), compared to the same period of 2004, the total growth of the industry was 3.4%, with increase in the production in seventeen activities. Automotive vehicles (7.6%) was the activity with the major positive impact in the formation of the overall rate, followed by electronic material and communication equipment (18.5%), mining and quarrying (10.2%) and edition and printing (12.3%). In these groups, the items that stood out were, respectively: cars, mobile telephones, iron ore and magazines. Among the activities with fall, basic metal products (-2.5%) was the one that most influenced negatively the indicator.

Still in the period January-October, all the categories of use grew. The segments consumer goods including durable (12.6%) and semi durable and non durable (5.1%), led the expansion, while intermediate goods (1.1%) and capital goods (3.2%) remained below the industrial average.

In summary, the indexes for the month of October 2005 showed that the industry sustained the same level of production of the previous month (increment of 0.1%), braking a falling trend registered in September (-2.3% compared to August). The result of October was a consequence, mainly, of the behavior of durable consumer goods (2.8%) and semi durable and non durable consumer goods (0.5%). Nevertheless, this stabilization observed in October does not revert the falling trend of the index of quarterly moving average. For the total of industry, the index of quarterly moving average fell 1.2% between August and September and – 0.5% in October.

The other indexes also portrayed this deceleration trend in industry. In the comparison with the same month of the previous year, September (-0.1%) and October (0.4%) had the lowest results since the end of 2003. The accumulated index in the last twelve months, which in the end of the first semester had a rate of 6.7%, reached 4.1% in October.