On an annual basis, industrial production increased by 0.3 per cent in the euro area and 0.9 per cent in the EU compared with April 2025, marking a return to growth after contractions recorded in recent months.
Industrial production in both the euro area and the EU rose 0.1 per cent in April 2026 from March, while increasing 0.3 per cent and 0.9 per cent year on year, respectively.
Growth was driven by non-durable consumer goods and intermediate goods.
Malta, Sweden and the Netherlands recorded the strongest monthly gains, while Denmark led annual growth at 12.2 per cent.
In the euro area, April’s monthly increase was supported by growth in non-durable consumer goods, up 1.7 per cent, durable consumer goods, up 1.0 per cent, and intermediate goods, up 0.8 per cent. However, production of capital goods fell 0.5 per cent, while energy output declined 0.4 per cent.
Across the EU, production increased for non-durable consumer goods by 0.9 per cent and intermediate goods by 0.7 per cent, while output of energy, capital goods and durable consumer goods declined slightly.
Among member states, Malta recorded the strongest monthly growth at 5.2 per cent, followed by Sweden at 3.4 per cent and the Netherlands at 1.6 per cent. The sharpest declines were reported in Bulgaria at 4.6 per cent, Greece at 3.5 per cent and Poland at 3.4 per cent.
On an annual basis, growth in the euro area was driven mainly by capital goods production, which rose 3.4 per cent, and energy output, up 1.6 per cent. In contrast, production of durable consumer goods fell 4.0 per cent and non-durable consumer goods declined 5.1 per cent.
At the country level, Denmark posted the strongest annual increase of 12.2 per cent, followed by Lithuania at 7.4 per cent and Malta at 7.3 per cent. The largest declines were recorded in Luxembourg at 6.1 per cent, Bulgaria and Ireland at 4.2 per cent each, and Estonia at 3.9 per cent.
Eurostat’s data indicate that while industrial activity is stabilising across Europe, growth remains uneven across sectors and countries, with consumer goods production continuing to face challenges despite stronger performance in capital goods and energy-related industries.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (CG)
