Malaysia's May factory output plummets 22.1% y-o-y, but less than forecast

[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia's industrial production index in May fell 22.1 per cent from a year earlier, slowing for the third month in a row, government data showed on Thursday, as curbs imposed to contain the coronavirus pandemic continued to dampen activity.

The index measures factory output from the manufacturing, mining and electricity generation sectors.

The decline was just shy of the 25 per cent annual fall forecast by analysts surveyed by Reuters, and slower than the 32 per cent tumble in April, the biggest drop on record.

All three main sectors tracked by the index posted declines in May, with manufacturing output falling 23.2 per cent from a year earlier, the Statistics Department said in a statement.

Electricity output fell 10.3 per cent on year, while the mining sector index was down 22.2 per cent, data from the department showed.

Malaysia's exports in May had plunged 25.5 per cent from a year earlier, its worst performance in more than a decade, amid a global slowdown caused by the pandemic, government data showed last week.

REUTERS