ROME, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Italian industrial production decreased by 1.9 percent in January compared to December 2017, the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) said on Monday.

However, the calendar-adjusted output in the same month showed a 4.0-percent rise against January 2017, the agency added. Between November 2017 and January 2018, Italy's industrial production also increased by 1.0 percent compared to the previous three months.

On an annual basis, calendar-adjusted indexes in January showed the most significant rise in consumer goods (8.6 percent), instrumental goods (7.6 percent), and intermediate goods (6.2 percent), ISTAT stated. The biggest drop was experienced in the energy sector, which showed a considerable 15.1 percent decrease.

In terms of sectors, the highest growth registered was that of metal products excluding machinery and equipment (14.1 percent), textile, apparel, leather and accessories (11.1 percent), and other manufactured products, repair and installation of machinery and equipment (8.4 percent).

Also compared to January 2017, the highest drops were registered in energy and gas supply, coke and refined petroleum products, and mining, data showed.