2024-07-26 12:43:07
RIO DE JANEIROIndustrial production in Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, registered a 1.0 percent decrease last May compared to the same month in 2023, the state-run Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) reported on Wednesday.
The agency indicated in its report that industrial production in turn reflected a 0.9 percent drop during the fifth month of the year compared to April, the second consecutive monthly decline, while in the first five months of the year it accumulated an advance of 2.5 percent.
According to the IBGE report, the decline in industrial production in May was an effect of the historic floods in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in the southern region of Brazil, one of the most industrialized regions in the country with an impact on the entire national production chain.
“Industry shows a lower intensity and greater dispersion of declines among activities in May. On the other hand, in May there was a markedly negative impact due to the influence of the rains in Rio Grande do Sul,” said IBGE.
The four major economic categories of industry considered and 16 of the 25 activities analyzed experienced a decrease in production during the fifth month of the year.
The activities with the most significant declines were those related to the tobacco industry with a fall of 28.2 percent, motor vehicles with a decrease of 11.7 percent, food products with a reduction of 4.0 percent and metallurgy with a decrease of 2.8 percent.
On the other hand, among the activities that registered an increase in their production were the extractive industries (2.6 percent), as well as coke, petroleum products and biofuels (1.9 percent).
In 2023, Brazil’s industrial output grew 0.2 percent compared to 2022, recovering from the 0.7 percent contraction a year earlier.