Malaysia's manufacturing sales up 13.1pc in January

Malaysia's manufacturing sales in January 2022 rose 13.1 per cent to 139 billion ringgit (about 33.15 billion US dollars) from a year ago, official data showed Friday.

The growth in sales value for the month was driven by the food, beverages and tobacco subsector which expanded 20.6 per cent, underpinned by the manufacture of food products industries, the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement.

The expansion was also attributed to the petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic products subsector that climbed 15.7 per cent, supported by the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products industries, reports Xinhua.

The electrical and electronics products subsector also grew 10.6 per cent mainly in the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products.

Sales value for export-oriented industries which accounted for 71 per cent of total sales value increased 14.4 per cent while domestic-oriented industries rose 10.1 per cent in January 2022 as compared to the same month in 2021.

According to DOSM, the growth of sales value for export-oriented industries was in line with the double-digit growth registered in the external trade exports and the price factors that remain favorable.