Industrial output down 1.9% in first nine months of 2010

ALGIERS- The industrial production of the national public sector dropped by 1.9 percent during the first nine months of 2010 compared to the same period a year earlier, said Thursday the National Office of Statistics (ONS).

This downward trend was mainly due to the 4% decrease in the manufacturing industries, despite the “slight increase” of 0.3% recorded during the third quarter, the ONS said. Except for wood, cork and paper industries, which went up by nearly 13%, and energy with + 5.3%, all the other sectors showed a general drop in the output, the source added.

After a 0.4 percent increase in 2009, the industrial output of the national public sector started falling during the first quarter by 2.7%, and by -2.3% in Q2, -0.7% in Q3 and -1.9% in the first nine months of 2010, the ONS said.