2023-11-26 16:56:58
The production of the manufacturing industry of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) registered an increase of 2.4% in October compared to the same period of the previous year, thus breaking the cycle of four consecutive months of declines, according to a report from the Argentine Confederation of Medium Enterprises (CAME).
At a monthly level, meanwhile, A significant increase of 9.8% was observed, “driven by growing demand that was due to the income policies implemented by the Government in the last month”, as analyzed by the union-business entity. However, despite both the year-on-year and monthly increases, if the 2023 numbers are looked exclusively at, SME production accumulates a drop of 0.5% in the first ten months of the year.
Regarding installed capacity, companies operated with 71.8% of their production possibilities, which means 1.2 percentage points below September. From CAME, they indicated that “In this context, industries resorted to using existing stocks to meet monthly demand, which explains the growth in production in October,” and they warned that, looking at the coming months, “it is important to highlight concerns about the long-term sustainability of this increase.”
At the same time, they specified that during October “complications have been identified in the acquisition of raw materials and inputs in various sectors,” noting that “the concern of some foreign suppliers about delays in payments persists over time, showing a growing trend. that complicates commercial relations.
Also in October, the best performance was from the “Textile and Clothing” sector, which experienced an annual growth of 20.2% in production at constant prices. On the other hand, the “Paper and Printing” sector had the largest year-on-year drop, which reached 10%.
In the accumulated of the year, the “Food and Beverages” sector leads with an increase of 4.2% compared to the January-October 2022 period, while the “Paper and Printing” sector registers the worst performance with a decrease of 15.5%.
Performance by sector
- Food and beverages: in October, production experienced an increase of 4.3% annually at constant prices, thus accumulating an increase of 4.2% in the first ten months of the year compared to the same period in 2022. Furthermore, in The monthly variation was observed an increase of 4.8%. Regarding installed capacity, the industries operated with 71.3%.
- Clothing and textiles: industrial production in this sector increased 20.2% year-on-year in October, accumulating growth of 3.8% in the first ten months of the year. In monthly terms, activity rose 14.4%, registering the largest increase of the year. However, industries operated at 73.5% of their installed capacity, which represents a decrease of 5 percentage points compared to the previous month.
- Wood and furniture: production rose 0.3% annually at constant prices in October, and posted an increase of the same magnitude in the accumulated ten-month period. In monthly terms, activity rose 7.4%. During the month, industries operated at 73.3% of their installed capacity, down from 76.7% in September.
- Metals, machinery, equipment and transport materials: in October, production experienced a slight increase of 1% at constant prices, although it accumulated a decrease of 1.4% so far this year. In the monthly comparison, a significant increase of 9.8% was recorded. Industries operated at 70% of their installed capacity, almost 1 percentage point below the 70.9% registered in September.
- Chemical products and plastics: production fell 3.2% annually in October, at constant prices, and accumulated a decrease of 2.5% in ten months of the year compared to the same period in 2022. However, in the monthly comparison, observed a significant increase of 16.9%. The industries worked with 69.9% of their installed capacity (72.6% in September).
- Paper, cardboard, publishing and printing: production fell 10% annually in October, at constant prices, and has accumulated a decrease of 15.5% so far this year (compared to the same period in 2022). Although in the monthly comparison there was a rebound of 6.7%, the situation of the industries in 2023 has been very bad. Companies worked with 80.5% of their installed capacity, up from 78.9% in September.
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