In March 2024, national industrial production grew 0.9% compared to February, in the seasonally adjusted series. It is the second consecutive increase, intensifying the 0.1% variation recorded in February. 

In the unadjusted series, compared to the same month of the previous year, the industry total fell 2.8% in March 2024, interrupting seven consecutive months of positive results in this comparison. In the first three months of 2024, the industrial sector expanded by 1.9%.

The annualized rate, a cumulative indicator over the last 12 months, increased 0.7% in March, reducing the intensity of growth in relation to the February result (1.0%).

Two of the four broad economic categories and only 5 of the 25 industrial sectors surveyed showed progress in production. Among the activities, the most important positive influences were recorded by food products (1.0%), textiles (4.5%), printing and reproduction of recordings (8.2%) and mining and quarrying industries (0.2%) .

On the other hand, among the 20 activities that recorded decline in production, motor vehicles, trailers and bodies (-6.0%) and computer equipment, electronic and optical products (-13.3%) exerted the main impacts in March 2024. It is also worth highlighting the declines recorded by the sectors of chemical products (-2.0%), basic metals (-2.6%), pulp, paper and paper products (-2.8%), miscellaneous products (-9.7%), beverages (-3.3%), leather, travel articles and footwear (-6.0%), wearing apparel and accessories (-4.5%), of non-metallic mineral products (-3.2%), coke, petroleum products and biofuels (-0.6%) and metal products (-2.6%).

Among the broad economic categories, also comparing with the previous month, intermediate goods (1.2%) and semi- and non-durable consumer goods (0.9%) recorded positive rates in March 2024. On the other hand, durable consumer goods (-4.2%) and capital goods (-2.8%) recorded negative results this month.

Quarterly moving average shows zero change in the quarter ended in March

Also in the seasonally adjusted series, the evolution of the quarterly moving average index for the total industry had zero change (0.0%) in the quarter ended in March 2024 compared to the level of the previous month, thus interrupting predominantly upward trend started in February 2023.

Among the broad economic categories, intermediate goods, by falling 0.8%, marked the only negative result this month and intensified the 0.6% drop recorded in February.

On the other hand, the capital goods sector (3.5%) recorded the strongest growth this month, after also advancing in February (3.9%) and January 2024 (2.4%). The segments of semi- and non-durable consumer goods (0.4%) and durable consumer goods (0.1%) also recorded positive results in March 2024, with the first advancing after showing zero change (0.0% ) for three consecutive months, and the second remaining on the upward trajectory that began in November 2023.

Compared to March 2023, industry drops 2.8%

In comparison with the same month of the previous year, the industrial sector recorded a decline of 2.8% in March 2024, with negative results in the four broad economic categories, in 17 of the 25 sectors, 61 of the 80 groups and 61.3% of the 789 products surveyed. It is worth mentioning that March 2024 (20 days) had three fewer working days than the same month in the previous year (23).

Among the activities, the main negative influences on the total industry were registered by chemical products (-8.1%), machinery and equipment (-12.9%), pharmaceutical products (-15.6%), motor vehicles , trailers and bodies (-6.4%) and computer equipment, electronic and optical products (-16.1%).

On the other hand, among the eight activities that showed expansion in production, coke, petroleum products and biofuels (2.8%) and mining and quarrying industries (1.6%) exerted the greatest influence on the formation of the industry average. Other important positive impacts were recorded by the pulp, paper and paper products sectors (4.2%) and other transportation equipment (7.7%).

Still compared to the same month of the previous year, among the broad economic categories, capital goods (-10.5%) recorded, in March 2024, the most pronounced reduction. The sectors producing durable consumer goods (-6.3%) and semi- and non-durable consumer goods (-3.2%) also showed higher declines than the national average (-2.8%), while the intermediate goods segment (-1.4%) recorded the least intense drop.

In the cumulative index for January-March 2024, compared to the same period of the previous year, the industrial sector registered an increase of 1.9%, with positive results in three of the four broad economic categories, 16 of the 25 sectors, 39 of the 80 groups and 51.8% of the 789 products surveyed. Among the activities, the main positive influences on the total industry were recorded by coke, petroleum products and biofuels (6.7%), mining and quarrying industries (4.6%) and food products (3.7%).

It is also worth highlighting the positive impacts recorded by the sectors of beverages (4.9%), pulp, paper and paper products (4.0%), rubber products and plastic material (3.3%), wood (10.9%), electrical machinery, apparatus and materials (4.5%) and other transportation equipment (7.4%).

On the other hand, also in the comparison with January-March 2023, among the nine activities that showed a reduction in production, pharmaceuticals (-16.9%) had the greatest influence on the formation of the industry average. Other important negative contributions were made by the activities of machinery and equipment (-5.4%), maintenance, repair and installation of machinery and equipment (-7.6%), chemical products (-1.7%), manufacturing of wearing apparel and accessories (-5.1%) and miscellaneous products (-7.6%).

Among the broad economic categories, the profile of results for the first three months of 2024 showed greater dynamism for intermediate goods (2.7%). The sectors producing semi- and non-durable consumer goods (1.6%) and durable consumer goods (0.8%) also recorded positive results in the cumulative index in the year, but recorded less intense advances than the average of industry (1.9%). On the other hand, the capital goods producing sector (-1.6%) marked the only decline in the cumulative result for the period January-March 2024.