Industrial output fell 1.9 percent in August: mining -10.1 percent, motor vehicles -8.7 percent
Growth over eight months is only 0.6 percent, and the number of industrial workers is down 3 percent year on year; the next data come on October 30.
The State Statistical Office reported that industrial production in August 2026 is 1.9 percent lower than in August 2025. This is the latest available figure, and the next one, for September, is scheduled for October 30. For the first eight months of the year the index is 100.6, which means growth of about 0.6 percent year on year.
Where is the fall? Mining and quarrying fell 10.1 percent, the largest decline. Manufacturing fell 1.3 percent, while the supply of electricity, gas and steam rose 0.8 percent. Among manufacturing branches, clothing, chemicals, rubber and plastics, metals, electrical equipment, machinery and equipment, and motor vehicles went down.
The largest individual falls, according to the data, are in machinery and equipment (-9.6 percent), motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers (-8.7 percent) and electrical equipment (-6.9 percent). North Macedonia is a country with a strong automotive industry working for foreign buyers, so the fall in this branch is an important signal, although a single monthly figure does not show a trend.
By main industrial groups, energy fell 6.5 percent, intermediate goods (excluding energy) 4 percent and capital goods 8.9 percent. By contrast, durable consumer goods rose 5 percent and non-durable ones 7 percent. That means production for domestic and final consumption is growing, while that for investment and further processing, which is more tied to external demand, is weakening.
The number of employees in industry in August is 3.0 percent lower than a year earlier, and in mining 8.0 percent lower. Producer prices on the domestic market were 0.1 percent lower in August than in July. These data complete the picture: the fall in output is accompanied by fewer employees.
Why does this matter now? One possible cause is costlier energy and uncertain external demand, on which automotive and machinery companies depend, but the August data do not prove that. In any case, 0.6 percent growth over eight months is a weak result for the sector.
What is not known? It is not known exactly why motor vehicles and machinery fell, or whether the fall is a one-off. The reports I checked give no month-on-month comparison (August versus July). Nor is it known what the September data show, which are expected on October 30, together with GDP and trade turnover.
What does it mean? Industry is on the edge of stagnation: it is growing only about 0.6 percent over eight months, and August brought a fall. The October 30 data will show whether it is a one-off or the beginning of lasting weakness.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · October 22, 2026
