German industrial production shrank in December, hit by falling activity in the manufacturing and energy sectors, but analysts insist the overall uptrend remains intact.
According to regular data compiled by the economy ministry, released on Friday, industrial output fell by 0.6 per cent in December, after rising by 2.4 per cent in November.
Manufacturing output slipped by 0.5 per cent and energy output was down by 2.6 per cent, while construction output edged up 0.5 per cent.
Taking November and December combined to iron out short-term fluctuations, industrial output grew by 1.5 per cent compared with the preceding two months, the ministry calculated.
Following a surprise drop in factory orders in December, the output data disappointed analysts who had been pencilling in a modest gain at the end of last year.
But the drop is not sufficient to derail altogether the tentative recovery in Europe's economy, analysts said.
"This doesn't change the stable uptrend of industry, not least because the November figure has also been revised upwards," Commerzbank economist Ralph Solveen said.
"That said, at probably 0.2 per cent, growth of the whole economy in the fourth quarter is looking fairly weak," he added.
Capital Economics economist Jonathan Loynes said the output data "are a bit of a blow to hopes that the eurozone's main growth engine is picking up speed".
"The better news is that the survey indicators continue to paint a rather brighter picture of the outlook for industry, and for the German economy as a whole," Loynes said.
"For now though, the hard activity data across the eurozone retains a distinctly weak tone, further raising the pressure on the ECB to provide more policy support next month," Loynes said.
