Czech industrial production increased by 1.9% year on year and by 2.8% month on month in October.

The October increase follows a 5% slump registered in September, which alarmed local analysts.

“The two-percent increase in industrial production in October was mainly influenced by a low comparison basis in car production,” commented Radek Matejka of the Czech Statistical Office (CZSO).

Analysts surveyed by the Czech Press Agency (CTK) agree that the increase in the industry is in line with the decreasing trend seen in the previous months.  

“Had it not been for the contribution of the automobile manufacturers, the industry production would have found itself in the drop of 2.4% instead of an increase by 1.9%,” the head economist at Cyrrus consultancy, Vit Hradil, was quoted as saying.  

Matejka added that the “manufacture of other transport equipment also contributed to the increase”.

Manufacturing motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers contributed to the increase in industry, amounting to 4.3 percentage points.

Statisticians noted in their report that “due to interruptions of supplies of components in the previous year, the production of this industry increased by over a fifth”.

The negative contributions came mainly from the manufacture of machinery and equipment and from the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products.

The value of new orders decreased by 4% y/y in October, in a year-and-half-long run of y/y decrease.

“Similarly, as with production, the decrease was most contributed to by manufacture of machinery and equipment and manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products”, Veronika Dolezalova of the CZSO stated.

Statisticians also reported on the October construction output, which decreased by 0.9% y/y and increased by 1.2% m/m.

Authorities granted 7.4% fewer building permits y/y, while the approximate value of permitted construction sites increased by 36.8%, and the number of started dwellings increased by 10%. The number of completed dwellings increased by 7.2%.

“In October, the approximate value of permitted constructions increased by over a third, which was influenced by permission of eight constructions with budgets of over CZK1bn,” Matejka commented, adding that without those construction sites, the value of permitted sites would have decreased by 5%.