PRODUCTION VOLUMES in manufacturing industries rose by almost 9 per cent in July compared to the same month a year earlier, the latest data from the Central Statistics Office shows, writes Caroline Madden.

The seasonally-adjusted volume of industrial production for the three months to the end of July was 4.7 per cent higher than in the three-month period before.

Ibec, the business sector lobby group, warned that although the overall figures appeared relatively positive, “pricing pressures” are “severely hitting” turnover.

The CSO data shows that turnover in July dropped by almost 12 per cent on an annual basis. Ibec economist Fergal O’Brien pointed out that almost all of the gains were in the pharma sector.