Moldovan industrial production increases by 3.4 per cent in 2017

Chisinau, 22 February /MOLDPRES/- The expansion of the activity of foreign investors, especially in the automotive industry, the positive developments in the agricultural sector that stimulated the growth of the food industry, increase of domestic and foreign demand for the national and industrial products, due to the opening of the foreign markets and turning to good account the international economic cooperation agreements were the main factors which led to the 3.4-per cent-increase in the industrial sector in 2017. Manufacturing increased by 4.5 per cent, stimulating the evolution of the entire industrial sector, according to statistics by the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure.

Thus, the most influential branches that led to the growth of the industry in 2017 were the manufacture of electric wires and cables, processing and preserving of fruit and vegetables, beverages, including wines, processing and preserving of meat, manufacture of rubber and plastic products, clothing, sugar. At the same time, the export of agricultural raw materials, saturating the domestic market with imported products, as well as the low competitiveness of some Moldovan products influenced the decrease in the industrial production.

Among the industries that contributed negatively to the evolution of the industrial sector are the production of oils and fats, manufacture of textile articles, lifting and handling equipment, glassware, electricity.

The food industry, which is a significant branch if manufacturing, increased by 6.4 per cent, as supported by favorable developments in the agricultural sector.

The beverage industry has risen. Last year, beverage production increased by 7.8 per cent and by 16 per cent – the volume exported to foreign markets. Over 70 per cent of wine production and more than 60 per cent of distilled alcohol is exported, accounting for about 8 per cent of the country’s exports. The increases show that the beverage producers have successfully shifted to other markets than the Russian one, allowing this industrial sub-sector to develop steadily.

The automotive industry is becoming an increasingly important branch of the national economy, The expansion of the investment projects within the free economic zones determined in 2017 the increase in the production of electric wires and cables by 43 per cent, influencing by 1.7 pp. increase in general industrial production index. Exports of this production also increased by 37.1 per cent, accounting for about 14 per cent of exports.

The extractive industry decreased by 3.7 per cent in 2017. Although investment activity in the construction sector seems to be re-launched (2.2 per cent growth in 9 months of 2017), however the extractive industry did not recover after the decline in 2015-2016.

The energy sector recorded a decrease in the production and supply of electricity, heat, gas, hot water and air conditioning (-1,7%). The electricity production volume amounted to 884.6 million kWh, decreasing by 1.8 per cent compared to 2016. At the same time, the thermal energy production for delivery to thermal power plants was 1691.8 thousand Gcal, down by 6.9 per cent than in the previous year. The drinking water supplied to the people amounted to 47.1 million m3, down by 3.8 per cent than in 2016.

(Editor M. Jantovan)