Slightly increased capacity utilisation

Capacity utilisation in industry increased by 0.7 percentage points to 88.4 percent in seasonally adjusted figures during the first quarter 2012 compared to the fourth quarter 2011.

The main industrial groupings showed a mixed development during the first quarter compared to the fourth quarter. Capacity utilisation in the intermediate goods industry increased by 1.3 percentage points to 88.4 percent. While in the non-durable consumer industry there was a decrease of 0.4 percentage points to 84.2 percent.

On an annual basis capacity utilisation in total decreased. Compared to the first quarter of last year, capacity utilisation decreased by 0.4 percentage points to 88.1 percent, in working day adjusted figures.

Capacity utilisation in industry, seasonally adjusted figures

Capacity utilisation in industry, percent

NACE 2007	INDUSTRY TITLE	Seasonally adjusted figures
		2011 Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	2012 Q1	Q1 2012- Q4 2011 ^[1]	Q1 2012- Q1 2011 ^[2]
B+C	Mines and quarries and manufacturing industry	88.8	88.5	88.7	87.7	88.4	0.7	‑0.4
-	Intermediate goods industry	88.7	89.0	88.5	87.1	88.4	1.3	‑0.4
-	Capital goods industry	90.6	89.2	90.6	90.1	90.0	‑0.1	‑0.7
-	Non-durable consumer goods industry	84.6	84.7	84.8	84.6	84.2	‑0.4	‑0.5
-	Durable consumer goods industry	89.9	89.4	88.3	88.0	88.7	0.7	‑1.1
B	Mines and quarries	90.8	89.8	94.5	94.7	94.8	0.1	4.1
C	Manufacturing industry	88.8	88.5	88.6	87.6	88.3	0.7	‑0.5
20-21	Industry for chemicals and pharmaceutical products	85.3	84.4	83.4	83.5	84.5	1.0	‑0.8
24	Industry for basic metals	91.6	91.5	90.7	87.2	90.9	3.7	‑0.8
26	Industry for manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products	90.5	89.9	89.0	85.3	86.0	0.7	‑4.6
28	Industry for machinery and equipment n.e.c.	91.0	92.2	92.7	91.8	91.1	‑0.7	0.2
29	Industry for motor vehicles	92.7	86.6	88.9	89.4	89.5	0.1	‑3.2

1) Working day and seasonally adjusted figures
2) Working day adjusted figures

Definitions and explanations

Percentage change

All comparisons between successive periods are based on seasonally adjusted percentages. Comparisons between the current period and the corresponding period of the previous year are based on working day adjusted percentages.

Revisions

When capacity utilisation for a new quarter is published, the percentage for the previous quarter is also revised. The material is normally revised for four quarters retroactively. This is mainly due to new and revised information having been received.

Seasonal adjustment

For industrial capacity utilisation the seasonal adjustment of each series is done separately by the program TRAMO-SEATS. This method was implemented in 2004 and is one of the methods recommended by Eurostat. An important part of this method is to identify a model for the actual time series for each industry.
From the publication of the results for the fourth quarter 2010, working day adjusted and trend figures are available in the database.

Review of the model

In connection with the publication in February regarding data for the fourth quarter of 2011 was a review of the model done. No models have changed in conjunction with the annual review.

Margin of uncertainty

As of the first quarter of 2011, the margin of uncertainty is published together with the point estimate of industrial capacity utilisation. Point estimates ± the margin of uncertainty correspond to a 95 percent confidence interval and refer to the uncertainty because the statistics are based on a probability sample of objects. The margin of uncertainty is published in the Statistical Database.