KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's Industrial Production Index (IPI) growth moderated to 2.3 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in September 2024 from a 4.1 per cent y-o-y growth in August 2024, dragged by weaker production in the manufacturing and electricity sectors,  according to the Department of Statistics (DOSM).

In a statement today, DOSM said that production in the manufacturing sector fell 3.2 per cent y-o-y in September 2024 from 6.5 per cent y-o-y in August 2024, weighed by slower expansion in export-oriented industries at 3.4 per cent against 6.3 per cent recorded in the preceding month.

It said growth in the electricity sector dropped to 3.9 per cent y-o-y from 4.2 per cent y-o-y in the previous month, while the mining sector, albeit remained in the negative territory for the third consecutive month, saw its production shrinking by 2.2 per cent y-o-y in September 2024, but improved against a 6.4 per cent y-o-y decline in August.

Chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the decline in the mining output was primarily influenced by crude oil and condensate production, which dropped further by 11.4 per cent in September 2024 from 5.7 per cent decline in August 2024, offsetting the rebound in natural gas production which grew 4.5 per cent y-o-y from a 7.0 per cent decline in the previous month.

On a month-on-month basis, DOSM said the IPI fell 0.7 per cent in September 2024 compared to the 1.7 per cent recorded in August 2024.

For the third quarter of 2024, Mohd Uzir said the IPI decreased by 3.9 per cent against 4.5 per cent in the second quarter of 2024, while throughout the first nine months of 2024, the IPI improved by 3.9 per cent from 0.7 per cent in the same period last year.

On domestic-oriented industries, DOSM said it shrank 2.7 per cent y-o-y in September 2024 against 7.1 per cent y-o-y in the previous month due to a 14.9 per cent decline in the manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers (up  7.7 per cent in August 2024), along with the fall in the manufacture of food processing products which fell 3.5 per cent versus 4.4 per cent in the previous month.