BRUSSELS – Euro zone industrial production soared in August far beyond expectations as manufacturers boosted investment despite fears of an upcoming recession, official estimates showed on Wednesday.
The European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said industrial production in the 19 countries sharing the euro increased 1.5 percent month-on-month in August for a 2.5-percent year-on-year rise.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected much more modest increases of 0.6 percent on the month and 1.2 percent year-on-year, after production fell in July.
Output of capital goods, such as machinery, rose 2.8 percent compared with July, in a sign of optimism pointing to new appetite for investment.
Manufacturers also produced more consumer goods, while they cut their energy output, data showed.
Among the bloc’s largest economies, France’s industrial production rose 2.5 percent on the month, Italy’s was up by 2.3 percent, whereas output declined in Germany by 0.5 percent.