October a month of solid growth for the Czech economy, say statisticians

Photo: Tomáš Adamec / Czech Radio

In October, Czech industry experienced the second best result in 2018 in terms of year-on-year growth, as the Czech Statistical Office reported growth of 6.7 percent. Largest contributions came from the car industry, metal manufacturing and the electronics sector.

Photo: Tomáš Adamec / Czech Radio
Almost all sectors of the economy contributed to the reported overall growth in October. According to the Czech Statistical Office, the car manufacturing sector contributed the most, experiencing an increase of 8.4 percent.

Companies specialising in metal construction work profited from a growth of 9.4 percent, while those active in producing electronic appliances saw 7.5 percent growth.

New orders, both foreign and domestic, also did very well in October. Rising by more than 12% in October, a number not reached since March 2017. Orders increased especially among those companies active in car, electronics and optical machine manufacturing.

ING Chief Economist, Jakub Seidler, says that although the overall growth of new orders in manufacturing is weaker than last year's 7.6 percent, this year’s 4.5 percent is still a solid result.

Analysts told the Czech News Agency that export numbers indicate Czech car manufacturers have managed to overcome the problems connected with adjusting to the new WLTP emission limits.

Growth in the construction sector, which was as high as 11.8 percent in September, slowed down to 10.4 percent. The construction of transport infrastructure is a particularly strong segment.

Analysts say that this is the result of the need to make use of EU funding. Ground construction is also doing well, profiting from high demand in the building of production facilities. However, progress is not as robust in the amount of constructed flats.