BRATISLAVA, August 10, (WEBNOVINY) — The growth rate of sales in the Slovak industry slowed down in June to the lowest level since December 2009. The Statistics Office of the Slovak Republic informed that industrial sales reached EUR 6.418 billion in the sixth month of this year, which represented nine percent year-on-year growth. In May, industrial sales swelled 15.5 percent. In a month-on-month comparison, industrial sales decreased by 1.5 percent in the sixth month.
The Statistics Office of the Slovak Republic further reported sales in June rose the most in the production of transport means (+32.9 percent). Sales further grew in distribution of electricity, gas, steam and cold air supplies (+15.5 percent), in production of rubber, and production of plastic and other non-metallic products (+13.2 percent), in production of coke, refined crude oil products (+20.3 percent), and in production of machinery and equipment not classified elsewhere (+ 15.2 percent). Sales in production of computers, electronic and optical devices dropped the most (- 35.8 percent), followed by sales of pharmaceutical products, down 23.5 percent.
The y/y growth rate of sales in the construction sector represented 2.4 percent in June, while sales amounted to EUR 847.2 million. The growth rate of sales in the transport and storage sector decelerated from May. Compared with June 2010, sales grew 7.2 percent to EUR 534.9 million.
In June, the ICT sector posted a 5.5-percent increase when sales reached EUR 427.3 million. In selected market services, sales went up twelve percent to EUR 836.1 million. In monthly terms, sales in the ICT sector fell 2.1 percent, in transport and storage 1.4 percent, and in construction 0.1 percent. Higher monthly sales were only in selected market services, namely by two percent.
Industrial sales totaled EUR 37.968 billion in the January-June period of this year, on a year-on-year growth of 14 percent. Sales mostly increased in the production of transport means, namely by 37.1 percent. Sales of computers, electronic and optical devices plummeted most, going down 13.1 percent. Sales of construction firms went up 1.3 percent to EUR 3.702 billion as of late June, in transport and storage sales reached EUR 3.125 billion. Sales in the ICT sector totaled EUR 2.315 billion on a 4.4-percent increase. Sales in selected market services swelled 12.8 percent y/y to EUR 4.594 million in the first half of this year.
On Tuesday, the statistics office released data on June industrial production, which suggested weakening of industrial sales. The June growth of industrial output of 4.9 percent was the weakest since November 2009.
For the whole of 2010, industrial sales in Slovakia grew 19.2 percent to EUR 67.5 billion.
SITA
