Italian seasonally-adjusted industrial production in January decreased by 2.3 percent on the previous month, the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) stated on Monday.
It was the first decline registered in four months, marking a sharp decrease compared to a 1.4-percent growth posted in December 2016.
On an annual basis, industrial production fell by 0.5 percent in January, ISTAT added.
It was the first drop after five consecutive months of a positive trend.
By sector, those registering the largest growth on an annual basis in January were electricity and gas supplies (17.1 percent), pharmaceuticals (12.7 percent), and chemical products (2.1 percent), according to ISTAT.
The sharpest decreases concerned all of the other manufacturing sectors, along with machinery repair and installation (9.5 percent), the wood, paper, and printing industry (8.5 percent), and mining activities (5.9 percent).
Compared with the previous month, energy production rose by 3.1 percent in January, while intermediate goods and consumer goods fell by 3.4 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively.
Industrial production between November 2016 and January 2017 grew by 0.5 percent compared to the previous three months, ISTAT added.
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