Sweden's industrial production defies expectations, falls unexpectedly in December

Sweden's industrial production defied economists' expectations for an increase and fell unexpectedly in December. Preliminary figures from Statistics Sweden showed Friday that Sweden's industrial production dropped a calendar-adjusted 0.9 percent year-over-year in December, faster than pace of declines in November's at 0.1 percent. Month-on-month, industrial production fell a seasonally adjusted 1.8 percent compared to a 1.1 percent in November.

Data widely missed economists’ expectations for a 2.7 percent year-over-year and 0.5 percent month-over-month rise for the month. For the whole year 2016, total industrial production advanced 1.8 percent as compared to 2015.

While manufacturing sector turned out somewhat weaker than expected, the larger private services sector surprised on the upside. Also, rising business sentiment suggest that better times are coming.

Seperate report from the statistical office showed that orders for industry gained 4.7 percent yearly in December, reversing a 2.8 percent decline in the prior month. Monthly orders rebounded 0.5 percent from November, when it slid by 0.5 percent.