PARIS (dpa-AFX) - France's manufacturing output growth improved in September driven by the sharp upturn in auto production but overall industrial production declined unexpectedly, data from the statistical office INSEE showed Thursday.
Manufacturing output expanded 0.5 percent month-on-month, following a 0.3 percent rise in August.
Meanwhile, industrial production dropped 0.5 percent, faster than the 0.4 percent decline seen in the previous month. Output was forecast to grow 0.3 percent.
Data showed that output bounced back in the manufacture of transport equipment by 2.7 percent due to the sharp upturn in manufacture of motor vehicles. Output increased again in the manufacture of electrical, electronic and computer equipment by 2.6 percent, where it reached its highest level since November 2023.
Output advanced in the food and beverage industries by 1.0 percent and increased again in the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products by 6.0 percent.
In mining and quarrying, energy, and water supply, output decreased 3.8 percent after a 2.8 percent fall, returning to its April 2026 level.
Further, data showed that construction output fell 0.2 percent, in contrast to the 0.7 percent increase in August.
Although manufacturing output rose for the second straight month, output is still below last year's level and construction is firmly in recession, said ING economist Charlotte de Montpellier. With this industry can only soften, not reverse, the economy's stagnation, the economist added.
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