Stats Dept: Manufacturing sector sales up 2.5pc y-o-y to RM1.03t for Jan-July 2023 

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 11 — The sales value of the manufacturing sector rose 2.5 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM1.03 trillion for the first seven months of 2023, the Department of Statistics Malaysia said.

During this period, the number of employees rose to 2.34 million, or by 1.7 per cent, while salaries and wages grew by 3.8 per cent to RM56.6 billion.

“Consequently, the sales value per employee posted a marginal growth of 0.8 per cent, amounting to RM441,255,” chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said in a statement.

On a monthly basis, he said the manufacturing sector’s sales value was down by 3 per cent to RM144 billion in July 2023.

“The sales value of the manufacturing sector fell for a second consecutive month in July 2023, narrowing to negative 3 per cent y-o-y from negative 4 per cent in the preceding month,” he said.

The deterioration was primarily influenced by the petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic sub-sector, which registered a continuous decline, reaching negative 15.3 per cent during the month (June 2023: -12.4 per cent) as well as to a contraction in the food, beverages and tobacco (-7.8 per cent) and wood, furniture, paper products and printing (-0.6 per cent) sub-sectors.

“Compared to the previous month, the sales value decreased by 2.4 per cent against June 2023’s RM147.4 billion.

The sales value of export-oriented industries, which represented 72.1 per cent of total sales, continued to decline by 7.0 per cent in July 2023 (June 2023: -7.4 per cent).

“This is mainly attributed to a decrease in the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products (-25.6 per cent); manufacture of vegetable and animal oils and fats (-18.5 per cent); and manufacture of rubber products (-10.8 per cent),” he said.

Nonetheless, the performance of domestic-oriented industries remained vigorous, reaching 9.2 per cent in July 2023 versus 6.8 per cent in June 2023, hence mitigating the impact of the deterioration in the export-oriented industries.

“The steady momentum of domestic-oriented industries was primarily underpinned by a strong growth in the sales value of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers manufacturing which registered 22.0 per cent,” he said. — Bernama