In February 2007, the industrial production changed by 0.3%, in the series without seasonal influences.  In the comparison with February 2006, industry increased by 3.0%.  In the first two months of 2007, the sector accumulated increase of 3.8% compared to the similar period of the previous year.  The annualized rate, indicator accumulated in the last twelve months, remained stable from January (2.9%) to February (2.8%). With the rate of 0.3% observed in the total of the industry between January and February, after changing -0.4% in the previous month, the level of production returned to the record level registered in December 2006.

In the comparison with January 2007, among the twenty-three segments which had seasonally adjusted series, fourteen had growth.  Among those which brought a positive result, stood out petroleum refining and alcohol production (4.1%), showing the increase in petroleum derivatives, after stoppage in some refineries which occurred in January; electronic material and communication equipment (7.4%), which shows growth after two months of decrease, period in which it accumulated loss of 6.1%; and food products (1.8%), which completes the sequence of four positive rates, accumulating gain of 4.2%.  The main negative results came from electric machines, equipment and material (-5.7%), machines and equipment (-2.6%) and basic metallurgy (-2.9%). It is worth mentioning that these activities were recording growing rates, reaching in January rates of 8.2%, 5.9% and 3.0%, respectively.

Still in the comparison with the previous month, the segment of durable consumer goods (1.2%) reached the highest rate among the categories of use, second consecutive positive result, accumulating growth of 3.4% in these two first months of the year, compared to December 2006.  The production of semi and non-durable consumer goods (0.7%) and of intermediate goods (0.5%) changed the result registered in January (respectively, -0.8% and -0.2%) and returned to the record level of December 2006.  The sector of capital goods (0.1%) brought stability after four consecutive positive results, accumulating expansion of 10.8% between October and February.

The evolution of the quarterly moving average in this beginning of the year showed stability (0.1%) between January and February. By category of use, clearly stood out the sector of capital goods, which in this same period increased its production in 2.8%, while in the other areas the rates were the following: durable consumer durable (1.0%), semi and non-durable consumer goods (0.3%) and intermediate goods (0.2%).

In the comparison February 2007/ February 2006, industry grew by 3.0%, with seventeen surveyed segments having increase in the production.  The major positive results on the overall index, by order of importance, came from machines and equipment (10.1%); food products (4.9%); basic metallurgy (9.1%); office machines and computer equipment (29.6%); other chemical products (6.7%); and mining and quarrying (6.3%).  The main items responsible for the favorable performance of these activities were respectively: microwave ovens and refrigerators; orange juice and crystallized sugar; carbon steel slugs, blocks, ingots and bobbins; computers and monitors; herbicides and fertilizers; iron ore and petroleum.  The most relevant negative results were observed in pharmaceuticals (-7.0%), edition and printing (-5.1%) and electronic material and communication equipment (-4.9%), influenced, respectively, by the decrease in the manufacturing of remedies, printed matter for industrial use and television sets.

Still in the comparison with February 2006, the indexes by categories of use confirmed the leadership of capital goods (14.3%), with a rhythm considerably above the industrial average (3.0%).  This performance was supported by all the sub-sectors, especially capital goods for mixed use (23.6%), transportation (6.3%) and for industrial use (8.7%).  The production of agricultural goods (11.3%) maintains growth for three consecutive months.  The sector of intermediate goods  (3.5%) maintains a sequence of eight positive rates, with almost all segments showing increase.  The main highlight was the group elaborated industrial inputs (3.5%), due to the performance of metallurgy, as a consequence of the stoppage of a high temperature oven in February of last year, followed by basic industrial inputs (7.3%), under the influence of the items iron ores and aluminum.  On the other hand, the only negative result was observed in the sub-sector of elaborated fuels and lubricants (-0.8%), mainly, due to the decrease in the item diesel oil.

With performance below the overall average (3.0%), the category of semi and non-durable consumer goods (1.0%) showed the second consecutive positive result in this comparison, with the major contribution coming from the sub-sector of food products and elaborated beverages for domestic consumption (3.4%), mainly due to the major production of orange juice and soft drinks. It can also be mentioned the positive rate of fuels (2.3%).  The group of other non-durable was the only one with decrease (-1.9%), influenced by the result of the pharmaceutical industry. Only category of use with decrease in this indicator, durable consumer  goods (-2.9%) was influenced by the reductions in the production of automobiles (-5.8%), mobile telephones (-7.2%) and household equipment of “brown line” (TV, radio and stereo) (-26.9%), while on the other hand it was observed increase in household equipment of “white line” (refrigerators, freezers, washing machines) (14.3%).

In the indicator accumulated January-February, compared to a similar period of 2006, the growth of 3.8% shows the increase in seventeen activities.  The manufacturing of machines and equipment (13.7%) maintained the leadership in terms of influence on the overall index, with the items microwave ovens and refrigerators as the major highlights.  Other positive and relevant contributions were observed in food products (5.4%), mainly due to the expansion in the production of orange juice and crystallized sugar; and of the sector of office machines and computer equipment (34.8%).  Electronic material and communication equipment (-9.0%), and petroleum refining and alcohol production (-3.4%) stood out among the ten activities with decrease.

By categories of use, still in the indicator accumulated in the year, the profile of growth in the beginning of 2007 confirms the dynamism observed in the production of capital goods (16.0%) which increases in a rhythm considerably above the overall average (3.8%).  The other categories remained below the average: intermediate goods (3.3%), semi and non-durable consumer goods (1.7%) and durable consumer goods (0.7%).

In summary, the indexes for the first two months of 2007 portray a scenario of stability compared to the productive level observed in the end of last year, shown by the trend of the quarterly moving average indicator, whose change for the total of industry was 0.1% between February and January of this year.  In the comparisons for longer periods, a slight acceleration in the industrial rhythm was observed, with the rate of 3.8% for the total of the industry in the first two months of 2007, higher than the index of the fourth quarter of the previous year (3.2%).  This trend was clearly observed in the sector of capital goods, whose growth was generalized, and increased from 7.8% to 16.0% between the two periods, especially for the sectors associated to the investment in industry and agriculture: capital goods for industrial use (from 16.4% to 15.8%) and agriculture machines and equipment (from -2.2% to 12.4%).  The sector of intermediate goods, of major weight in the industrial structure, also had acceleration changing from a rate of 2.2% to 3.3%.  On the other hand, the segments of consumer goods lost dynamism.  The production of durable consumer goods changed from 4.3% in the last quarter of 2006 to 0.7% in the first two months of 2007, a result influenced by the fall of the volume of the exports of automobiles and mobile telephones as well as the expansion of imports, especially, of electronic equipment.  The consumption of semi and non-durable consumer goods, with a moderated deceleration, changed from 2.8% to 1.7%, standing out negatively the performances of semi-durables (from -1.9% to -4.1%) and fuels (from 2.4% to -2.5%).