BUDAPEST, August 15, 2008 (AFP) - Hungary's industrial output dropped by 1.6 percent on a monthly basis in June, affected by a weakening economy in western Europe, the central statistics bureau KSH said on Friday.

On a 12-month basis, industrial production dropped by 0.3 percent.

In May, output had gone down by 0.7 percent on a monthly basis, while increasing by 4.7 percent on a yearly-basis.

KSH said the latest figures, which represented the first June drop since 2002, were due to the poor state of the economy in western Europe, which is the main buyer of Hungarian industry.

Another contributing factor was the rising Hungarian forint against the euro, which was lowering exporters' revenues.

In the first six months of 2008, industrial output went up 5.6 percent compared to the same period last year, KSH said.