The seasonally adjusted index of industrial production increased by 0.9 per cent over the previous month, the NSO said in a statement.

When compared to May 2021, the working-day adjusted index of industrial production fell by 4.3 per cent.

After adjusting for seasonal effects and the working-day pattern, the biggest increase was recorded in the production of energy (16.0 per cent) followed by an increase in the production of capital goods (8.1 per cent).

The production of consumer goods and intermediate goods decreased by 3.2 per cent and 2.0 per cent respectively, NSO said.

In May,  the total production generated by the  Maltese manufacturing,  energy, and mining and quarrying industries went down by 4.3 per cent when compared to May 2021.

Decreases were registered in the production of consumer goods (12.8 per cent) and energy (5.4 per cent). On the other hand, the production of capital goods and intermediate goods went up by 10.2 per cent and 1.0 per cent respectively, the NSO said.