THE declining trend of manufacturing output seems to have been reversed but
prospect of recovery remains fragile due to the prolonged recession in Europe,
the United Nations today reported.
World
manufacturing output grew by 1.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2013, up from
1.3 per cent at the end of 2012, according to the United Nations Industrial
Development Organization (UNIDO).
“The
recovery of industrialized economies has been jeopardized by stagnation in
Europe due to austerity measures,” the report’s authors noted, adding that the
large number of unemployed will remain that way for the foreseeable future.
Manufacturing output in France fell by 4.2 percent, in Germany by 1.7
percent, in Italy by 4.5 percent, in the Russian Federation by 3.1 percent and
in the United Kingdom by 2.1 percent, according to data cited in the report.
Positive growth in Europe was maintained by a few smaller economies, including
Austria, Estonia and Denmark.
Negative growth was observed in Japan in the first quarter but showed
signs of rebound with a 2.0 per cent growth on a quarter-to-quarter basis. The
falling exchange rate of the Japanese Yen against other currencies is expected
to reduce the price of Japanese goods abroad which in turn may increase exports,
the report predicted.
The
base of the current growth is limited to the United States and China only, the
world’s leading manufacturers. In the United States, figures systematically rose
in 2012 and the first quarter of 2013. The most impressive growth, based on
information in the report, in machinery and equipment, electrical appliances and
the manufacture of motor vehicles.
Meanwhile, China’s output grew by 9.7 per cent, slightly down from 10.0
per cent in the previous quarter. This high growth accounts for more than half
of the manufacturing output of developing and emerging industrial economies. The
main reason for the lower rate of growth has been a fall in exports to
industrialized countries, and low capital inflow to developing countries in
return.
The
UNIDO report also contains the growth estimates for the first quarter by major
manufacturing sectors.
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