Directorate for Economic Planning: Industrial Production is Growing

The Council of Ministers of BiH took note of the Information from the Directorate for Economic Planning on macroeconomic indicators for the period January – October 2016.

Industrial production in BiH in this period increased by 3.8 percent compared to the same period in 2015, with the largest monthly increase occurring in February, amounting to 7.3 percent.

Export-oriented manufacturing industry, with an increase of 3.2 percent, was the main driver of growth, along with the electricity and mining sectors, which achieved production increases of 6.1 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively, compared to the same period in 2015. At the branch level, the highest growth rates were recorded in furniture production (15.3 percent), chemical and finished metal products (around 13 percent), and food and wood products (around 8 percent and 6 percent, respectively) compared to the same period last year.

In September 2016, the number of employed persons in BiH was 733.3 thousand, an increase of 2 percent compared to the same month in 2015. The number of registered unemployed persons in October 2016 was 512.5 thousand, a decrease of 4.5 percent on an annual level. The most significant contribution to the growth in employment was in the wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, and manufacturing industries.

The total amount of deposits at the end of September reached 17.2 billion KM, and household deposits increased by 6.6 percent by the end of September.

The foreign trade goods deficit in BiH for the period January-October 2016 amounted to 5.551 billion KM, a decrease of 3.2 percent compared to the same period last year. In 10 months of last year, BiH exported goods worth 7.692 billion KM, representing an increase of 2.6 percent compared to the same period last year, while imports stagnated at 13.243 billion KM – according to the Council of Ministers.