Malaysia: Industrial output expands at record rate April
Industrial output expanded at a record-breaking pace of 50.1% year-on-year in April, jumping from March’s 9.3% increase. April’s stellar result benefited from a favorable base effect, and largely reflected surging manufacturing and electricity and gas sub-sectors output. Moreover, mining and quarrying production bounced back healthily over the previous month.
On a monthly basis, factory output swung back into expansion, albeit only marginally, increasing 0.1% in seasonally-adjusted terms in April (March: -2.2% s.a. mom). Lastly, the trend improved significantly, with the annual average variation of industrial production coming in at 3.4%, swinging up from March’s minus 3.5%.