KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 11): The manufacturing sector’s August 2024 sales value reached RM163.9 billion, reflecting a year-on-year (y-o-y) increase of 7.7%, versus a decline of 3.3% in the same month last year, according to the Department of Statistics Department (DOSM).
However, the sector’s sales value moderated compared to the 9.1% growth observed in the preceding month.
Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin attributed the increase primarily to the double-digit growth in the food, beverages, and tobacco sub-sector at 16.1% (July 2024: 16%), and in electrical and electronics products at 10.4% (July 2024: 8.2%).
“On a month-to-month basis, the sales value grew by 4.4%, following a 0.6% rise in July 2024, when sales value amounted to RM157.1 billion,” he said in the August Monthly Manufacturing Statistics report released on Friday.
Mohd Uzir also highlighted that export-oriented industries, which accounted for 72.7% of the total sales value, grew by 7.8% in August 2024, a modest rise from 9.4% recorded in the previous month. The performance was driven by increases in the manufacture of computer, electronics, and optical products (12.0%), vegetable and animal oils and fats (23.3%), and rubber products (11.6%).
For a month-on-month comparison, the sales value of the export-oriented industries recovered to 5%, from a marginal decline of 0.5% in July 2024.
Similarly, he said domestic-oriented industries expanded by 7.6% in August (July 2024: 8.4%), mainly due to growth in the manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers, and semi-trailers (10.4%), food processing products (7.5%), and fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment (9.7%).
For comparison monthly, the sales value of domestic-oriented industries remained on the rise by recording a growth of 2.7% (July 2024: 3.7%).
Mohd Uzir also noted that the total number of employees in the manufacturing sector increased by 1% to 2.38 million (July 2024: 1.3%), compared to a year ago. “The growth was predominantly attributed to the food, beverages and tobacco sub-sector (3.9%); wood, furniture, paper products and printing (1.1%); and textiles, wearing apparel, leather, and footwear (1.5%),” he said.
Compared with the preceding month, the number of employees improved by 0.4%, after a slight drop of 0.01% in July 2024. In line with increase in the number of employees, the salaries and wages paid in the manufacturing sector rose by 1.5%, reaching a total of RM8.12 billion.
“This led to an average monthly salary and wage increase of 0.6% per employee, amounting to RM3,417 in August 2024 (July 2024: 1.2%; RM3,429). The sales value per employee rose by 6.7% to record RM66,950 (July 2024: 7.8%; RM66,285),” he added.
For the first eight months of this year, the manufacturing sector’s cumulative sales value reached RM1.24 trillion, an increase of 4.9% compared to the same period in 2023 (January–August 2023: RM1.18 trillion; 1.7%).
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