Industry revenue rises 0.8% in September, shows CNI

The manufacturing industry's revenue grew 0.8% in September, but the result recovers only part of the losses recorded in the two previous months. In July, the indicator fell 2.1%, and in August it dropped 3.8%. The data comes from the Industrial Indicators, released by the National Confederation of Industry (CNI) this Wednesday (11). In the cumulative period from January to September 2026, revenue remained stable compared to the same period last year. Other indicators also point to a scenario of weakening industrial activity, with declines in employment and payroll. Check out the survey's main results: • Revenue: up 0.8% in September; • Installed capacity: rose from 77.1% to 77.3%; • Hours worked: down 0.1%; • Employment: down 0.3%; • Payroll: down 0.3%; • Average earnings: up 0.1%. Weakening "The indicators show the continued weakening of industrial activity. Three main factors contribute to this: the high level of interest rates; the strong inflow of imports, which capture part of the consumer market; and rising costs, which end up pressuring prices," CNI Policies and Industry specialist Larissa Nocko assessed in a statement. Regarding interest rates, the economist notes that high rates indebt the population, scare off investors, and harm demand for industrial products. Stable production Installed Capacity Utilization (UCI) rose slightly by 0.2 percentage points in September, moving from 77.1% to 77.3%. According to the survey, the variation indicates relative stability in the use of the industrial park. In the cumulative period of the first nine months of 2026, however, installed capacity utilization was 1.1 percentage points below the level recorded in the same period of 2025. Hours worked in production also showed little variation. The indicator fell 0.1% in September, while in the year-to-date cumulative period it was 0.8% below the result observed between January and September 2025. Declining employment The indicators related to the industrial labor market also lost strength in September. Employment fell 0.3% compared to August and accumulates a contraction of 0.5% in the first nine months of 2026. Real payroll, which represents the total paid to workers, fell 0.3% in the month. Despite the decline, the indicator still shows an increase of 1% when comparing January to September of this year with the same period of 2025. The average earnings of industrial workers showed a positive variation of 0.1%, a result considered one of relative stability. In the year-to-date cumulative period, the indicator is 1.5% above the level recorded in the first nine months of 2025. According to the CNI, the partial recovery in revenue was not enough to reverse the previous losses. Regarding the labor market, the results reinforce, in the entity's view, the slowdown of industry.