Oil refining, basic metals, and chemicals led the level of industrial activity
In contrast, below the general level were publishing and printing at 58.5%; non-metallic mineral products at 54.8%; tobacco products, at 49.2%; automotive industry at 46.5%; metalworking excluding the automotive industry at 42.7%; rubber and plastic products at 42.4%; and textile products, also at 42.4%.
The utilization of installed capacity in the industry reached 59.9% in April, according to INDEC, and was above the 58.6% recorded in the same month of 2025. The numbers confirm an improvement compared to the first months of the year and the release of productive forces anticipated by Javier Milei, marking the highest level in six months, amid an economy undergoing a process of productive reorganization towards competitive activities.
The indicator nearly touched 60% despite the manufacturing industrial production index recording a year-on-year decline of 2.8% in April. The data, far from being a contradiction, reflect a recovery of national productivity: sectors such as oil refining, basic metal industries, and chemical substances operated with high levels of utilization, while textiles, rubber and plastic, metalworking, and automotive continued to lag behind. To a large extent, these are sectors that for years depended on protectionist schemes, closed borders, and artificial distortions, making it more difficult for them to face the process of economic normalization.
Among the sectors that were above the general average, oil refining stood out at 86.8%; basic metal industries at 73.4%; chemical substances and products at 69.9%; paper and cardboard at 67.3%; and food and beverage products at 60.4%.
The main positive contribution was observed in chemical substances and products, which increased from 59% in April 2025 to 69.9% in April of this year. According to INDEC, the comparison is influenced by the impact that the floods in March 2025 had in Bahía Blanca, which affected the supply of natural gas to the petrochemical plants in the area.
There was also a significant improvement in basic metal industries, which reached an installed capacity utilization of 73.4%, compared to 63.9% a year ago. In this sector, INDEC linked the progress to the year-on-year increase of 18.4% in crude steel production, according to data from the Argentine Steel Association.
Oil refining, one of the strongest sectors in the report, reached 86.8% due to increased crude processing. This data reinforces the growing weight of the energy sector within economic activity, in a context where Argentina seeks to consolidate exports and improve its external profile.
