Manufacturing sales reach RM921.5 billion
Published on: Saturday, August 10, 2024
By: Bernama
Mohd Uzir said sales for the sector remained on steady growth with a 5.9 per cent rise to reach RM156.1 billion in June 2024, primarily driven by the electrical and electronics products sub-sector, which grew by 7.1 per cent after registering a 12.2 per cent growth in May 2024.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s manufacturing sector sales reached RM921.5 billion in the January-June 2024 period, increasing by 3.7 per cent versus the 3.5 per cent growth in the same period a year ago, said the Statistics Department Malaysia (DoSM).
Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the sector’s headcount was up by 1.0 per cent to a total of 2.37 million, while salaries and wages grew by 1.3 per cent to RM49.3 billion.
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“Sales value per employee was RM388,904, a 2.7 per cent growth,” he said in the June Monthly Manufacturing Statistics report.
The second quarter of 2024 (2Q 2024) registered sales of RM464.2 billion, reflecting a growth of 5.7 per cent (1Q 2024: 1.8 per cent), which was attributed to the electrical and electronics products (7.3 per cent) and the food, beverages and tobacco (8.2 per cent) sub-sectors.
“Furthermore, the number of employees, and salaries and wages paid during the quarter went up by 1.0 per cent (1Q 2024: 0.5 per cent) and 1.4 per cent (1Q 2024: 1.2 per cent), respectively,” he added.
Mohd Uzir said sales for the sector remained on steady growth with a 5.9 per cent rise to reach RM156.1 billion in June 2024, primarily driven by the electrical and electronics products sub-sector, which grew by 7.1 per cent after registering a 12.2 per cent growth in May 2024.
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“The growth was also supported by the food, beverages and tobacco sub-sector, with an increase of 8.6 per cent; and non-metallic mineral products, basic metal and fabricated metal products, which rose by 11.1 per cent.
“On a month-on-month basis, the sales value grew by 0.8 per cent from RM154.9 billion in May 2024,” he said.
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He said sales value for the export-oriented industries, which accounted for 73.1 per cent, continued to expand at a faster pace of 6.0 per cent in June 2024 (May 2024: 4.6 per cent), while domestic-oriented industries grew a modest 5.5 per cent (May 2024: 7.9 per cent) due to 5.2 per cent decline in motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers sales.
“There were 2.37 million employees in the manufacturing sector in June 2024, a 1.0 per cent increase compared to 0.9 per cent in May 2024,” Mohd Uzir said.
Salaries and wages rose by 1.8 per cent to total RM8.20 billion in June 2024, he added.
Meanwhile, RHB Investment Bank Bhd (RHB IB) says it has maintained its optimistic outlook for the manufacturing sector, supported by an improved global and domestic economic environment, the global technology upcycle, and increased investment appetite.
It said ongoing developments, such as the continued growth in exports and robust global semiconductor sales, reinforced its positive view of Malaysia’s manufacturing sector.
“The upturn in the technology cycle is indicated by regional economies’ uptrend in electrical and electronics (E&E) exports and strong growth in global semiconductor sales.
“For instance, global semiconductor industry sales posted a strong increase of 18.3 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in the second quarter 2024 (2Q 2024), with quarter-to-quarter sales increasing for the first time since 4Q 2023,” it said in a research note.
Meanwhile, RHB IB said it maintained Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) forecast at 4.6 per cent y-o-y for 2024, above the consensus estimate of 4.5 per cent y-o-y, with the balance of risks tilted to the upside, given the stronger-than-expected 2Q 2024 advance GDP growth print.
“Our view for Malaysia’s GDP to see an acceleration in 2Q24 has materialised nicely, as indicated by our proprietary GDP leading index model pointing at a growth of at least 5.0 per cent y-o-y, and the growth is likely to sustain at 5.0 per cent y-o-y in 3Q 2024,” it said.
In 2Q 2024, Malaysia’s industrial production expanded by 4.5 per cent compared to the manufacturing growth estimate of 4.7 per cent.
The investment bank also noted that Malaysia’s growth would likely stay underpinned by externally-facing industries, specifically its manufacturing and trade sectors.
As for the ringgit, RHB IB expects it to range between 4.40 and 4.50 per US dollar for the rest of the year, revising its view for the United States Federal Fund Rate to see a September and December cut, amounting to a cumulative 50 basis points reduction.
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