In January 2025, industries in the sector operated at 61.6% of their installed capacity, 1.3 percentage points less than in December 2024 and 9.4 points less than in January of the same year. The activity of several sectors showed variations both year-on-year and month-on-month.
In the Paper and Printing sector, there was a year-on-year increase of 2.6% and a monthly increase of 6.9%, operating at 55.9% of its capacity in January, which represented a decrease of 4.9 points compared to December 2024 and 11.1 points compared to January 2024.
On the other hand, Chemicals and Plastics experienced a year-on-year increase of 15% and a monthly increase of 5.8% in January, operating at 56.7% of their capacity, which meant a decline of 2.9 points compared to December 2024 and 11.5 points compared to January 2024.
In the Wood and Furniture sector, a year-on-year growth of 25.9% and a monthly increase of 6.3% were recorded in January, with an operating capacity of 63.6%, 0.6 points less than in December 2024 and 10.9 points less than in January 2024.
The Metal, Machinery and Equipment, and Transportation Material industries showed a recovery of 16.9% year-on-year and 4.9% month-on-month in January, operating at 59.4% of their capacity, 2.7 points less than in December 2024 and 16.5 points less than in January 2024.
Regarding Textiles and Clothing, production rose 9% year-on-year and 4% compared to December 2024. Analyzing the utilization of installed capacity, it was observed that the woodworking industry was the most active, operating at 64.5%, followed by Paper and Printing, at 63.6%.
In the Food and Beverage sector, there was a year-on-year increase of 4.2% in January, as well as in the month-on-month comparison which showed a recovery of 3.3%. All analyzed sectors experienced an increase compared to the previous month in both the year-on-year comparison and the seasonally adjusted monthly measure.
Manufacturing SMEs showed year-on-year growth of 12.2% in January, although they did not recover the levels prior to the 30% drop suffered in the same month of the previous year. Industrial activity showed a month-on-month increase of 4.8% in January, maintaining a positive trend since August of the previous year. The SME Industrial Production Index (IPIP) revealed that the use of installed capacity was 59%.
