Irish industrial productionfell marginally by 0.1 per cent in May compared with the previous month, according to the latest data from the Central Statistics Office.

The seasonally adjusted volume of industrial production for manufacturing industries for the three months to May declined by 1.4 per cent on the previous quarter. The figures, however, showed that production was up 0.3 per cent compared with May last year, following a year-on-year rise of 5.7 per cent in April.

High-tech and chemical industry businesses showed an annual drop in production of 1.5 per cent in the year to May.