Moldova's industrial production shrank 26.3 percent to $302.5m (at the current exchange rate set by the National Bank of Moldova) in January-February 2009 compared with the same period a year earlier. The National Bureau of Statistics linked the drop to lower output in the mining industry (down 65.5 percent), as well as in the secondary industry (down 27.8 percent) and the energy sector (down 10.4 percent).
Experts trace the fall to problems in finding a market for the products and a difficult situation on foreign markets, largely because of dwindling orders from foreign companies and local consumers, as well as a lack of raw materials and current assets. In the meantime, while production of wine shrank 36.6 percent, that of clothes 22 percent, and that of machinery and equipment 55.7 percent, certain industries enjoyed a rise in output, including the production of poultry meat (up 2.1 times), pasta (up 39.9 percent), and cereals (up 8.7 percent). RBC
