Euro zone production falls more than expected in September

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Euro zone industrial production shrunk by more than expected in September compared to August, mainly due to a sharp fall in the output of consumer goods, but it was still higher than a year earlier, the European Union's statistics office data showed.

Eurostat said output in the 19 countries sharing the euro fell 0.3 percent month-on-month in September for a 1.7 percent year-on-year rise. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a 0.1 percent monthly decline and a 1.3 percent annual rise.

Production of durable consumer goods fell the most month-on-month, declining by 3.9 percent, the data showed. Output of non-durable consumer goods, such as food or toiletries, also declined by 1 percent, signaling broader weakness of demand from households.

The production of capital goods, used in investment, also fell 0.3 percent on the month.

But compared to September 2014, the production of consumer goods, both durable and non durable, was clearly higher at 2.6 and 2.1 percent respectively and the output of capital goods was also up by 2.2 percent.

(Reporting By Jan Strupczewski; editing by Philip Blenkinsop)

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