The Dutch manufacturing sector faced a challenging December 2024, with calendar-adjusted output falling 4.4% year-on-year (YoY), according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS). This decline means the sector has now experienced 18 consecutive months without growth, underscoring persistent struggles across various industries. More than half of the industrial sectors saw reduced production compared to the previous year.
The transport equipment sector was hit hardest, showing the sharpest decline in output among the eight largest sectors. Conversely, the repair and installation of machinery sector bucked the trend, recording the largest growth in output.
On a month-on-month (MoM) basis, after seasonal and working-day adjustments, manufacturing output decreased by 1% in December compared to November 2024. Looking forward, Dutch manufacturers remained pessimistic in January 2025, maintaining a negative outlook similar to December. While there was some improvement in their views on order positions, manufacturers expressed less optimism about expected output and growing concerns about finished product stocks.
These findings highlight the ongoing difficulties facing the Dutch manufacturing sector, with challenges ranging from global demand fluctuations to domestic production inefficiencies. The continuous decline may prompt further industry and government action to support recovery.
Contraction in over half of industrial sectors
More than half of the various industrial sectors produced less than they did one year previously. Of the eight largest sectors, output fell the most sharply in the transport equipment sector, while it rose the most in the repair and installation of machinery.
Manufacturers equally negative in January
Dutch manufacturers were just as negative in January as they were in December. Manufacturers were less negative about their order positions, but also less positive about expected output and more negative about stocks of finished products.
Germany is an important market for the Dutch manufacturing sector. In January, German business owners were less negative than they were in December, as reported by Eurostat. In December, the calendar-adjusted output of the German manufacturing sector was down by 4.0 percent year on year. Relative to November, output fell by 3.3 percent, as reported by Destatis.
