In the euro area, the inter-annual decline was 2.9 percentage points, the statistical office of the European Union (Eurostat) announced on Monday after releasing its preliminary estimates for the period in question.

The volume of production also decreased when comparing May with April this year, with decreases of 0.8 percent in the EU as a whole and 0.6 percentage points in the Eurozone.

According to the source, the monthly production of durable consumer goods fell by 1.8 percent in the euro area and 2.1 percent in the EU, while the production of non-durable consumer goods increased by 1.6 and 0.8 percent, respectively.

Upon considering the month-on-month results, the best performers in May were Ireland, Luxembourg, and Latvia, while the biggest declines were recorded in Slovenia, Romania, and Denmark, Eurostat stated.

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