English
Malaysia: Industrial output rebounds in May as more industries resume
KUALA LUMPUR: The industrial production index (IPI) rebounded by 18.2% in May from a month ago as the government allowed more industries to resume operations under the Movement Control Order.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the rebound in the May IPI was due to the increase in all indices.
The manufacturing index surged 25.9%, electricity was up by 13.7% and mining edged up by 0.4%
However, when compared with a year ago, the IPI tumbled 22.1% in May 2020 from a year ago, but the decline was still less severe when compared with a Bloomberg survey of a 29% fall.
“Deterioration of IPI in May 2020 was due to the significant decline in all indices; index of manufacturing (-23.2%), index of mining (-22.2%) and index of electricity (-10.3%), ” it said.
The Statistics Department said the output of the manufacturing sector in May contracted by 23.2% on-year basis after plunging 37.2% in April 2020.
The main sub-sectors contributing to the decrease in manufacturing sector in May were non-metallic mineral products, basic metal and fabricated metal products (-45.1%); transport equipment and other manufactures (-38.5%) and petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic products (-24.3%).
The output in the mining sector dropped 22.2% in May from a year ago. The deterioration was due to the decrease in crude oil and condensate index (-22.2%) and natural gas index (-22.2%).
As for the electricity sector, it output fell by 10.3% in May from a year ago.
Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2020/07/09/industrial-output-rebounds-in-may-as-more-industries-resume#cxrecs_s