Down compared to the previous month, up year-on-year but only due to price effects.
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The data coming from Istat on industrial turnover in June are mixed, with a drop of one point compared to May, a slowdown visible both in value and volume. On an annual basis, there is instead a 3.1% increase, although volumes contract by almost one point. A similar situation in the average of the first half of the year, with revenue values growing by 2.6% and volumes almost flat at +0.1%.
Driving the annual average upward are particularly chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and rubber-plastics but above all metallurgy (+13.9%), led upward by price increases due to energy. Energy in particular shows the most significant annual growth, with revenues increasing by over 22%.
Thus, the situation of stagnation for industry is confirmed on average in the first half of the year, which in terms of production between January and June sees a limited progress of 0.5%, an average mainly limited by the fashion sector and chemicals, while the rebound of the automotive sector is the main driving element.
Lights and shadows also on exports. Because while it is true that in the first six months, despite a difficult international scenario, our sales abroad rise by 4.5%, a significant part of this growth (seven billion additional, half of the overall absolute value progress of made in Italy) is linked to the sale of gold bars to Switzerland while more than one sector closes the semester down (fashion, paper, furniture) or at the levels of the previous year (machinery).
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