New orders for processing sector down by a quarter

Industrial production was down by 12 percent in November 2008, compared to November 2007. Production in the first 11 months of 2008 was up by 0.4 percent compared to the same period in 2007. Industrial export was up by 1.1 percent in the first 11 months of 2008, but dropped by 14.3 percent in November. Domestic sales of the processing sector were 7.8 percent lower in November than a year earlier. All sectors within the processing industry showed decline in November. Production of food, beverages and tobacco was down by 14 percent, mainly as a result of a drop in domestic demand. New orders for companies in the processing industry were down by 25.1 percent, compared to the same month of 2007. Total orders were 6.6 percent lower than a year before. Per capita industrial production was up by 0.9 percent, with a 0.6 percent drop in workforce.