Thailand
Malaysia: January industrial production index up 3%
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s manufacturing sector got off to a slower start in January, with the industrial production index (IPI) up 3% from a year ago, which was below Bloomberg’s survey of a 6.8% growth.
The Statistics Department said the January IPI was down 4.5% from December 2017 due to slower growth in the manufacturing sector. It said the manufacturing index grew at a slower pace of 4.8% year-on-year.
“The expansion in January was supported by growth in all indices – manufacturing (4.8%), mining (1.5%) and electricity (4.3%),” it said. Growth had slowed down after the 5.3% increase in December 2017.
The major sub-sectors which recorded increases in January 2018 were food, beverage and tobacco products (14.4%), petroleum products, chemicals, rubber and plastic (2.1%) as well as electrical and electronic equipment products (4%).
However, the mining sector output rebounded with a growth of 1.5% in January 2018 (December 2017: minus 4.1%).
This growth was contributed by the increase in crude oil index (1.8%) and natural gas index (1.5%).
The electricity output increased by 4.3% in January 2018 after recording 3.9% growth in December 2017.
Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2018/03/14/january-industrial-production-index-up-3/#2CuiDy6Q2TJxy03H.99