The rate of world manufacturing output growth decelerated in 2011, amid fears of a double-dip recession due to the instability of financial markets, especially in euro-zone countries. The total of world manufacturing value added (MVA) also dropped, compared to the previous year.

The latest annual estimates of global industrial production are published in the 2012 edition of the International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, released this week by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

While industrialized countries’ recovery from the 2008-9 financial crisis suffered some setbacks last year, developing countries continued to maintain a high growth of MVA in 2011. Developing countries’ share of world MVA now exceeds one third of the total. Three developing countries, namely Brazil, China and India, have maintained their places among the world’s top 10 manufacturers.

The Yearbook highlights the rise of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) as an important group of emerging world manufacturers. The BRICS countries produced more than one fifth of world MVA and the groupings’ annual average MVA growth rate was estimated at 8.5 per cent over the last decade.

According to the Yearbook, the refining of petroleum products has contributed to significant MVA growth in a number of oil-producing countries. Among these countries, the United Arab Emirates had the highest per capita MVA in 2011. Outside the Gulf region, Angola, Indonesia and Sudan have achieved significant increases in per capita MVA in recent years.

However, the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) still lag behind other developing countries. In the year 2010 (the most recent year for which this data is available), average MVA per capita for the LDCs was just USD 41 (at year 2000 prices), whereas the average for the other developing countries was USD 498.

The UNIDO publication also presents important statistics concerning the manufacturing sector’s different divisions and sectors. While the United States and Japan dominate the production of high-technology manufacturing goods, leading developing economies, such as Brazil, China, India and Mexico, have made remarkable progress in the production of chemical and pharmaceutical goods, and basic and fabricated metal products, as well as machinery and equipment.

The International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics also presents detailed, country-specific, business structure statistics, which provide empirical evidence for formulating industrial policy and carrying out comparative analysis of structural change and productivity.

UNIDO maintains an international industrial statistics database covering mining and quarrying, manufacturing and the international trade of manufactured goods.

The International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics 2012 is a joint publication of UNIDO and Edward Elgar Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-0-85793-624-0