KUALA LUMPUR, May 10— Manufacturing sales rose 13.9 per cent to record the highest value of RM144.6 billion in March 2022 from RM126.9 billion in the same period last year, said the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
The sales value increased 9.8 per cent from the previous month, according to the DOSM’s monthly manufacturing statistics report for March 2022 released today,
Chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the growth in sales value in March 2022 was driven by the electrical and electronics products subsector (25.9 per cent), especially in the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products.
“The expansion was also attributed by the food, beverage & tobacco subsector (14.4 per cent), supported by the manufacture of food products industries, as well as the petroleum, chemical, rubber & plastic products subsector (6.3 per cent), mainly in the manufacture of coke & refined petroleum products industries,” he said in a statement, today.
Mohd Uzir said sales value for export-oriented industries, which accounted for 72.2 per cent of total sales value, recorded an increase of 16.8 per cent, while domestic-oriented industries posted an increment of 7.1 per cent in March 2022 compared to the same month of 2021.
“The growth of sales value for export-oriented industries was in similar trend with the external trade exports and the price factors that remain favourable,” he said.
On month-on-month comparison, export-oriented and domestic-oriented industries grew 11.2 per cent and 6.4 per cent, respectively, he added.
Meanwhile, he said in the first quarter of 2022, the sales value of the manufacturing sector rose 12.8 per cent to RM415.3 billion as compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
The increase was driven by electrical & electronics products (17.6 per cent), food, beverages & tobacco products (16.3 per cent), and petroleum, chemical, rubber & plastics products (9.7 per cent).
Mohd Uzir said the total number of employees engaged in the manufacturing sector improved by 2.4 per cent to 2,287,325 persons in March 2022 from 2,233,545 persons in March 2021.
The report stated that salaries & wages paid increased 4.4 per cent or RM328.6 million to RM7,842.9 million in March 2022 from the same month of the preceding year.
— Bernama
