FX.co ★ Malaysian Industrial Production Growth Improves

Malaysia's industrial production demonstrated accelerated growth in November, primarily driven by robust performance within the manufacturing sector, according to recent data released by the Department of Statistics on Friday.

The industrial output experienced a year-on-year increase of 3.6 percent in November, up from a 2.0 percent rise in the preceding month, marking a consistent upward trend starting January.

Breaking it down by sectors, the manufacturing sector’s growth improved significantly, climbing to 4.6 percent from 3.3 percent in October. Similarly, electricity generation rose at a quicker rate of 3.9 percent, compared to a 1.9 percent increase the previous month. Conversely, the contraction in mining activity was less pronounced, easing to a 0.8 percent decline from the earlier 2.8 percent drop.

On a month-over-month basis, industrial production climbed by 0.5 percent, following a 1.7 percent increase recorded last month.

In a separate set of data, it was noted that Malaysia’s unemployment rate held steady at 3.2 percent for the third consecutive month in November, with 546,700 individuals unemployed, a slight improvement from the 551,400 recorded in October.