Italian industrial production data has seen something of a seesaw pattern over the summer. August's figures, which showed a 0.2% gain over the month from -0.7% in July, confirmed that pattern. Production stands now just 0.6% higher than in December 2019 in pre-Covid times. The monthly gain was driven by consumer goods (+1.2%), while investment goods (-0.1%), intermediate goods (-0.9%) and energy (-2.2%) all contracted. Sector-wise, within the manufacturing domain, only pharmaceuticals (+18.3%) and transport equipment (+5.7%) are now showing positive gains in year-on-year terms. The others are all in negative ... (full story)