Manufacturing output, excluding petroleum refining, rose 4.0% in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, according to recent data. The increase signals continued, albeit uneven, growth in the sector as the year closed.
The gains were largely driven by increases in several key industries, including food manufacturing, which saw a 9.9% rise, and pharmaceuticals, which experienced a substantial 28.9% increase. Production of metal products, excluding machinery and equipment, also contributed to the positive trend, climbing 14.5%. Gains were also reported in the production of other non-metallic mineral products (up 4.8%), other transport equipment (up 37.1%), and tobacco products (up 4.7%).
However, not all sectors performed well. The automotive industry saw a 6.2% decline, while the apparel industry, the manufacturing of computer, electronic, and optical products, the manufacturing of electrical equipment, and other manufacturing industries experienced decreases of 4.7%, 12.6%, 2.3%, and 15.4% respectively. These declines highlight the varied challenges facing manufacturers.
Production in extractive industries decreased by 4.4%, driven by a 4.6% drop in the production of diverse extractive industry products, partially offset by a 0.7% increase in metallic mineral production.
Electricity production, however, increased by 2.8%. Production indices for 2025, compared to 2024, showed increases of 7.0% for extractive industries, 4.1% for manufacturing excluding petroleum refining, and 6.3% for electricity production.
