In France and in the Eurozone, manufacturing production remains weakened by the economic crisis

In France, between January 2000 and December 2013, output in manufacturing industry decreased by 15% in volume (figure 1). This fall occurred essentially between April 2008 and April 2009, at the height of the economic crisis.

From January 2000 to April 2008, manufacturing output as a whole remained relatively stable (+2%). There were, however, variations of between –2.5% in “other manufacturing” and +17 % in the “manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment; machine equipment”.

Then, from May 2008 to April 2009, manufacturing output fell steeply, as a consequence of the economic and financial crisis. In April 2009, it decreased by 22% in one year – an average of –1.8% per month. Apart from the “manufacture of food products and beverages”, which suffered only a slight reduction in production, all branches were affected. The decline was particularly marked in the “manufacture of transport equipment” (–32%), the “manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment; machine equipment” (–31%), and to a lesser extent in “other manufacturing” (–22%). The “manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products” branch, for which production tends to fluctuate, held up in 2008 and only began its decline in 2009.

From May 2009 to May 2011, manufacturing output in France bounced back (+12.5%, a monthly average of +0.5%), but it remained below its pre-crisis levels. This recovery affected all branches except for “coking and refinery”, where production continued to fall until October 2010, reaching its lowest level for 10 years, before rising again slightly.

From May 2011, manufacturing production shrank again. This slight fall continued for almost two years, until early 2013 (–0.3% per month, on average, from June 2011 to March 2013). During this period, all branches were in decline, particularly the “‘manufacture of other industrial products” and the “manufacture of transportation equipment”.

Manufacturing production finally seemed to stabilize during 2013. The “manufacture of electrical, electronic and computing equipment, and the manufacture of machines” and the “manufacture of transportation equipment” were slightly up, while “coking and refinery”, the “manufacture of other industrial products” and the “agricultural and food industries” remained in a slump.

All in all, the annual average volume of manufacturing production fell by 16% between 2007 and 2013, with wide disparities within the different branches. So, in “transportation equipment”, the “automobile industry” was strongly affected by the crisis (–35% between 2007 and 2013), but this was not the case for “other transportation equipment” (+16%). This industry was boosted by good French performances in aeronautical and space construction.

Between 2000 and 2008, before the crisis, manufacturing production in the Eurozone regularly increased. During this period, production was most dynamic in Germany, followed by Spain, Italy and France (figure 2).

From May 2008, manufacturing production fell steeply in the Eurozone. It reached its lowest level in April 2009, after falling 22% in one year. As in France, production in Germany and Italy fell to historical lows.

After this, manufacturing production in the Eurozone recovered slightly until 2011, particularly in Germany. In Spain it remained stable, but at a low level.

From May 2011 and until the end of 2012, production fell again in the Eurozone. This decline was particularly marked in Spain and Italy, where government debt aggravated the effects of the crisis, and more moderate in France. Production in Germany fared best, and is, little by little, recovering to its pre-crisis level.

In 2013, manufacturing production fell by 0.7%, compared with 2012 for the whole of the Eurozone. While rising slightly in Germany (+0.3%), the recovery was slow to reach Spain (–1.3%) and Italy (–2.7%). Having said that, production in late 2013 seemed to heading in a better direction in all countries.

German production of “transportation equipment” rose strongly, overtaking its pre-crisis levels, both in the “automobile industry” and in “other transportation equipment”. In the “automobile industry”, before the crisis, production in Germany was rising less steeply than in France (and in the Eurozone); since 2000, its overall progress has become largely superior to France’s, and is the principal reason for the good health of this industry in the Eurozone.

“Industrial production index - Sources and methods from the 95 base”, number 104.

Eurozone: in this study, the Eurozone corresponds to the 17 countries of 31 December 2013, (Germany, Austria, Belgium, Spain, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta, Slovakia and Estonia).