According to data provided by Statistics Estonia, in May the total production of industrial enterprises increased by 4.8% at constant prices in comparison to May 2021. Output increased in all three industrial sectors, with manufacturing growing by 2.2%, electricity production by 34.2% and a 25.5% rise in mining.
Helle Bunder, analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that May was similar to April, in that manufacturing was slow. However, Bunder added: “Output increased in mining due to the extraction of peat and also in the energy sector due to the rising domestic electricity production.”
In May, over half of Estonia’s manufacturing industries saw an increase in production volumes, though there were several larger areas in which output levels remained unchanged or decreased.
There were increases in the manufacture of electronic products (+20%), electrical equipment (+19.2%) and a +19% growth in machinery and equipment n.e.c. Output remained more or less the same in the manufacture of fabricated metal products, which grew by just 0.3% and food products (+0.8%). However, output from the manufacture of wood decreased by 1.6%.
67.2% of Estonia’s total manufacturing output was sold to external markets, with computers and electronic products accounting for the highest share of export sales. According to unadjusted data, export sales increased by 31% and domestic sales by 27.2% YoY, at current prices.
The seasonally adjusted total for industrial production fell by 0.3% in May, compared to April, and the production of manufacturing also saw a 2.2% decrease.
In the energy sector, the volume of electricity production (in megawatt-hours) increased by 88.4% from April to May, while heat production dropped by 3.2%. (ERR/Business World Magazine)