The industrial production in France had a bigger-than-expected decline in December, as factories have been affected by the negative impact of national-level transport strikes and the slowdown of the pan-European economy.

The INSEE statistical agency said France’s industrial production fell by 2.8% on a monthly basis in December. This is the largest decrease in the indicator in almost two years. On the other hand, economists predicted a decline of just 0.3%.

The manufacturers were forced to slow production levels in December as their supply lines were hit by protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reform.

Economists said the decline in industrial production largely contributed to the surprising drop in overall economic growth in the fourth quarter by 0.1% compared to the previous three months.

However, the weakness of industrial production in other European countries suggests that not only domestic problems lie behind the slowdown in French factory activity. Germany reported a 3.5% decline in its industrial output in December. On the other hand, industrial production in Spain has increased, but with much less than expected. The country’s industrial output registered a growth of 0.8%, with a forecast increase of 2.2%.

A separate report from the French customs office said the country’s trade deficit fell in December to 4.1 billion EUR from the 5.4 billion EUR registered in November.

Although France’s economy has slowed in the last quarter, INSEE said on Friday that the labor market has continued to improve.

Between October and December 2019, 40,700 new jobs were added to the private sector. Thus, the total number of new jobs created last year is 210,100.