-
The Philippine manufacturing sector recorded slower growth in the first month of the year as majority of industry divisions posted declines
-
The value of production index for manufacturing continued to increase at an annual rate of 0.9% while the volume of production index rose 1.9% in January 2024
-
The manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products, and electrical equipment both contributed to the overall growth of VaPI and VoPI
The Philippine manufacturing sector recorded slower growth in the first month of the year as majority of industry divisions posted declines, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The value of production index (VaPI) for manufacturing continued to increase at an annual rate of 0.9% in January 2024 albeit at a slower pace than the 2.2% growth in December 2023 and 12.5% increase in January 2023, according to PSA’s latest Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries (MISSI).
READ: PH manufacturing sector saw continued growth in Dec
The volume of production index (VoPI) likewise rose 1.9% in January 2024, slightly faster than the 1.6% growth in December 2023 but slower than the 7.3% increment recorded in January 2023.
VaPI’s slower growth was primarily brought by the 6.6% annual drop in the manufacture of basic metals industry division, which contributed 34% to the deceleration in the annual increase of VaPI for January 2024.
Out of the 22 industry divisions for the manufacturing section, basic metals was the fifth industry division with the highest weight in the computation of VaPI.
Other primary contributors were the annual decline of manufacture of transport equipment at 2.9%, and the slowdown in the annual increment of manufacture of electrical equipment at 11.3%.
Of the remaining 19 industry divisions, 11 exhibited annual reductions during the period while eight industry divisions posted annual increases in January 2024. The manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products posted the highest annual increment of 27.8% during the period.
The manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products was also part of the top three industry divisions that contributed to the growth in VaPI, which also include the manufacture of beverages, and electrical equipment.
The slower annual drop in the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products, meanwhile, mainly accounted for the expansion of VoPI in January 2024. Other main contributors were the slower annual decrement in the manufacture of beverages, and the double-digit annual increase observed in the manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment.
Of the remaining 19 industry divisions, eight registered year-on-year increases in January 2024. In contrast, 11 industry divisions posted annual declines during the period, with the manufacture of textiles registering the highest drop at 31.5%.
The manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products was also one of the top three industry divisions that contributed to the overall growth in VoPI, followed by fabricated metal products, and electrical equipment.
Based on MISSI’s responding establishments, the average capacity utilization rate for the manufacturing sector in January 2024 was reported at 74.5%, slightly up from the 74.4% in December 2023.
Almost all industry divisions reported capacity utilization rates of more than 60%, except the manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations at 55%. The top three industry divisions in terms of reported capacity utilization rate were manufacture of furniture (88.7%), transport equipment (86%), and rubber and plastic products (82.4%).
