PETALING JAYA: The Industrial Production Index (IPI) increased by 3.6% year-on-year in November 2024, driven by sustained output growth in the manufacturing sector, said Department of Statistics Malaysia.
Chief Statistician Malaysia Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said, “The IPI’s growth further increased by 3.6% in November 2024 after registering 2% in the previous month, sustaining a positive momentum for eleven consecutive months. The expansion was supported by the manufacturing sector, which expanded by 4.6% (October 2024: 3.3%) coupled with the rise of 3.9% in electricity output (October 2024: 1.9%).”
However, he added, the mining sector production remained on a downward trend, albeit with a smaller negative growth of 0.8% in November 2024 (October 2024: -2.8%).
Month-on-month, the IPI grew 0.5% from 1.7% in October 2024, he said.
The output of export-oriented industries which account for two-thirds of the manufacturing sector, expanded by 5.6% in November compared to 3.3% in the previous month. The expansion was supported mainly by the manufacture of computer, electronics & optical products which soared by 8.8%; followed by the manufacture of coke & refined petroleum products at 2.8%; and the manufacture of plastic products which increased by 8.7%. The year-on-year expansion mirrored the country’s export performance, which surged by 10.3% in November 2024. On a month-on-month comparison, export-oriented industries rebounded by 0.1% after recording a negative 1.4% growth in October 2024.
Nevertheless, domestic-oriented industries continued to grow modestly at 2.6% after registering growth of 3.3% in October 2024. The increase in these industries was primarily led by manufacture of food processing products (5.6%); the manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery & equipment (4.9%); and the manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products (2.9%).
In comparison to the preceding month, domestic-oriented industries turned around by 3% against the negative growth of 0.9% recorded in October 2024.
Mohd Uzir said, “The production of mining sector in November 2024 edged down by 0.8% influenced by a decline in the crude oil & condensate index which dropped by 3.8% (October 2024: -7.5%) while the natural gas index increased by 1.2% (October 2024: 0.4%). As compared to the previous month, the mining index grew at a marginal 0.2% as compared to the growth of 14.7% recorded in October 2024. Meanwhile, the generation of electricity expanded by 3.9% year-on-year in November 2024 after registering an increase of 1.9% in the preceding month. In comparison with October 2024, the electricity index went down by 3.9% as against the positive 3.6% in October 2024.”
On a global scale, the IPI for several countries increased, including China, Singapore and Vietnam, while South Korea continued to increase with a marginal growth in November 2024. Conversely, the United States, Japan and Thailand experienced a decline during the month.
For the first eleven months of the year (January-November 2024), the IPI improved to 3.7% (January-November 2023: 0.8%), with all sectors posting increases, namely the mining index (0.7%); manufacturing index (4.2%); and electricity index (5.8%), Mohd Uzir said.
