Official figures show that the volume of industrial production in April was 4% higher than in the same month last year. Production was up 2.2% compared with March.
The biggest annual increases were in pharmaceutical products (11.3%) and beverages (9.9%).
Production in the modern sector, which includes technology and chemicals, was up 2.6% compared with April last year. There was a 1.4% increase in the traditional sector.
For the three months from February to April, production was down 1.8% compared with the previous three months.
Bloxham economist Alan McQuaid said the figures for the first part of this year were 'somewhat disappointing' compared with the strong performance of the industrial sector in the second half of 2010.
'A lot will depend on what happens to the world economy and global demand in the next few months,' he added.
