GENEVA — Apparel production in developing countries increased by 15.2 percent in the third quarter compared with the same period last year, lifting the sector to a 3.8 percent gain in the three months through September, as output in rich industrialized nations decreased 8.7 percent, a United Nations report said.
Global textile output also delivered mixed results, with world production increasing by 3.8 percent, as developing countries grew 8.7 percent, but industrialized nations declined 1 percent.
Overall global manufacturing notched a 5.5 percent increase in the quarter compared with a year earlier.
The report by the Vienna-based U.N. Industrial Development Organization said the latest estimates of world manufacturing output reveal that, “Another downturn in world industrial production is not imminent.” There are clear indications that the yearly manufacturing growth is returning to pre-economic crisis levels, it said.
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U.N. economists said world industrial production “is likely to stabilize in 2012,” but added this will depend on fiscal measures taken by governments in the U.S. and Europe to consolidate their budgets, and the implications of their policies on the manufacturing sector.
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Overall, the report shows that rich countries are on average lagging far behind in manufacturing growth rates compared with dynamic emerging nations, with the exception of a few strong performers such as Germany.
In the third quarter, manufacturing output in industrialized countries grew by an estimated 3.3 percent, with U.S. output up by 4.1 percent and Germany delivering a strong 9.6 percent expansion among euro area nations. Developing nations maintained “high growth rates in all sectors,” but their domination was particularly observed in apparel, the report noted.
Manufacturing output in developing countries surged ahead 13 percent in the third quarter, UNIDO said, and noted that China’s industrial sector — accounts for almost half of that of developing countries production — grew 14.5 percent. Robust growth rates in manufacturing were also achieved by Bangladesh, up 18 percent; Turkey, up 7.8 percent, and Vietnam, which delivered a 7.4 percent increase.
Moderate industrial growth was observed in some major developing nations such as India, which grew 3.1 percent; Mexico, 4.6 percent, and Brazil, where industrial output grew 0.1 percent.