Statistics show that industrial production has grown each month this year, with the figure for July reaching an increase of 7.1% while that of June being revised to 5% from 3.2%, the government said in a statement this afternoon.

The volume of machinery imported to invest in new products was also on the rise, which means that industrial production is set to continue to grow in the coming months.

Industrial exportation rose by €20 million, or 1.6%, in the first seven months of this year. This includes an increase in food, pharmaceutical, plastic, printed, optical and mechanical products. The majority of this increase went to countries outside the European Union, the government said.

It added that a survey carried out among companies in the manufacturing industry shows that there are plans for the employment of more people in the coming months. There has been an increase of 400 people in employment in the manufacturing industry, as against the lost of 2,000 jobs in the sector in the previous five years.