Growth of the segment, which has been challenged by the semiconductor shortage and supply chain problems over the past year, picked up from 16.6% in the previous month.

This year the usual end-of-summer shutdowns were cancelled because of forced halts in production in the spring, while in the base period scheduled shutdowns and supply chains halted production.

The automotive segment accounted for 21% of manufacturing sector output in August. Output of the computer, electronics and optical equipment segment, accounting for 11% of manufacturing, rose 25.6% y/y. Output of the food, drinks and tobacco segment, which made up 14% of manufacturing sector output, climbed 13.7%.

 

The KSH confirmed that headline industrial output increased by 14.4% in August, expanding at the fastest pace in more than a year.  Adjusted output increased by 9.3%, accelerating from 6.6% in the previous month.  On a monthly basis, output edged up a seasonally- and workday-adjusted 0.1%, and in the first eight months output was up 6.1% y/y.

Industrial sales rose 18.4% y/y in August. Export sales increased 27.7% and domestic sales climbed 8.0%. In absolute terms, industrial sales reached HUF7.2 trillion (€16.7) and exports sales accounted for 57% of the total.

Industrial production accelerated to 9.2% on average in the first two months of Q3 from 4.7% in Q2, which could support third-quarter GDP, Magyar Bankholding senior analyst Gergely Suppan said.

Soaring energy prices could force several sectors to cut production, and external demand could be weighed down by food- and energy price-driven inflation through a decline in purchasing power. The high order books could offset these negative impacts, he added.

Magyar Bankholding expects industrial growth to slow from 9.6% in 2021 to 6% in 2022.