Factories and refineries in the euro zone increased production faster than expected in January, according to official EU data.
Industrial output in January grew by 0.9% from December, giving an annual increase of 3.8%, the Eurostat agency said.
The figures, adjusted to take account of seasonal variations, beat economists expectations for an increase of only 0.3% in the month.
They also marked an acceleration from December when the output stalled over one month and grew 1.7% over the year.
The January improvement was driven by stronger production of capital goods, which are used to make other goods and include such things as machinery and tools.
