Mechanics at a standstill
Dal Poz: compared with the start of the crisis, we need to make up 29.7 per cent
A setback in the metal and mechanical engineering sector. After three positive quarters, output levels in the July–September 2015 period remained unchanged from the previous three months. This break-even result was made possible by a 3.3 per cent increase in the transport equipment sector, which offset the declines in other sectors, such as metallurgy (-1.1 per cent), computers and radio equipment (-0.9 per cent), and mechanical machinery and equipment (-0.5 per cent). Recovery is still a long way off, according to Federmeccanica’s leadership, who yesterday presented the 136th economic survey. However, the outlook for the coming quarter is positive, based on expectations regarding orders and production. Compared with the start of the crisis, said Federmeccanica’s vice-president, Alberto Dal Poz, production is still 29.7 per cent below pre-crisis levels, compared with -0.2 per cent in Germany, -3.7 per cent in the UK and -21.3 per cent in France, ‘A third of what we used to produce,’ he continued, ‘has been lost. It is now important to restore confidence, and the metalworking sector, which accounts for 8 per cent of the national GDP, must be treated as a priority.’
