Factory output down 11% in Mar

Factory performance deteriorated further in March, declining by a steeper 11 percent than the revised 0.8-percent drop a month ago as manufacturers continue to feel the impact of rising production cost brought about by the global increase in fuel prices, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported yesterday.

The government statistics office said that it had monitored sharp drop in output in key sectors led by leather products which exhibited a nearly 93-percent drop in output volume as well as double-digit falls in petroleum products, food manufacturing, transport equipment, tobacco, wood products and footwear and clothing.

Analysts said the sector continued to suffer from weak output due also to weak consumer demand and rising political uncertainty during the review period.

In January, a 0.6-percent drop was recorded following a three-percent drop in December last year. In November, the sector exhibited an 8.4-percent drop after a 5.5-percent decline in October.

On a month-on-month basis, the volume of production index inched up 0.7 percent in March.

In terms of value, the government statistics office said the industry managed to grow by 1.2 percent in March, slower than the revised 13.8 percent expansion recorded in February.

Sectors that significantly contributed to the growth were beverage, leather products, transport equipment, footwear and wearing apparel and furniture and fixtures.

The manufacturing sector’s average capacity utilization rate stood at 78.6 percent in March compared with a revised 78.4 percent in February.

A more accurate picture of the sector’s performance in the first quarter is expected today, when the economic planning department will announce gross domestic product (GDP) figures for the first three months of the years.