In the second quarter of 2023, the revenue of the industrial sector has decreased by 7.5 percent compared to the same quarter last year. For the past two years, industrial revenue has been higher each quarter compared to the previous year. Industrial producers anticipate that revenue will remain approximately unchanged in the third quarter of 2023. This report is based on new data released by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).
Both domestic and foreign revenue of industrial producers were 3.2 and 10.1 percent lower, respectively, compared to a year earlier in the second quarter. Domestic and foreign selling prices also decreased by 3.4 and 5.9 percent, respectively. The trends in domestic selling prices and domestic revenue of industrial producers show a similar pattern this quarter.
During the second quarter of 2023, there were more bankruptcies pronounced than in the previous year. The number of bankruptcies in the industry amounted to 62, while there were 39 in the same quarter of 2022. This indicates a significant increase. This trend of rising bankruptcies has persisted since the first quarter of 2022.
Revenue in the electrical and machinery industry (+13.7 percent) and the transportation equipment industry (+11.0 percent) increased more rapidly than in other branches of the industry. On the other hand, revenue declined in most branches compared to the second quarter of the previous year. The revenue of refineries and chemistry (-28.5 percent) and the paper and graphics industry (-11.9 percent) decreased the most. Selling prices also decreased in refineries and chemistry (-19.7 percent) and the paper and graphics industry (-1.6 percent).
Within the individual branches, the highest revenue increase was in repair, maintenance, and service (+21.6 percent), followed by the other machinery and equipment industry (+18.7 percent) and the automobile and trailer industry (+18.5 percent). Selling prices in these sub-branches have also risen: by 7.4 percent in the automobile and trailer industry and 6.6 percent in the other machinery and equipment industry. Selling prices increased the most in the wood and construction materials industry, namely by 10.8 percent.
The expectation for the third quarter is a flat revenue growth. Only half a percent of entrepreneurs expect their revenue to increase in the third quarter of 2023. This indicates a less positive outlook on revenue compared to the same period a year earlier, when this percentage was still 7 percent. In terms of employment, 8 percent of entrepreneurs expect to hire more personnel in the third quarter, a percentage lower than in the same period a year earlier (19 percent).
https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/nieuws/2023/34/omzet-industrie-7-5-procent-lager-in-het-tweede-kwartaal