The sales value of the Manufacturing sector registered a decline of
4.2 per cent to record RM149.9 billion in December 2023

The sales value of the Manufacturing sector fell by 4.2 per cent to RM149.9 billion in December 2023 (November 2023: -2.6%), marking the largest decline since May 2020 (-20.4%). The decrease was primarily influenced by the continuous decline in the Petroleum, chemical, rubber & plastic products sub-sector since June 2023, registering a negative 13.6 per cent in December 2023 (November 2023: -10.8%). Moreover,  the Electrical & electronics products sub-sector dropped by 4.6 per cent  (November 2023: -5.3%) while the Food, beverages & tobacco sub-sector slipped by 2.6 per cent (November 2023: 2.0%). As compared to the preceding month, the sales value shrank by 3.3 per cent as against RM155.0 billion recorded in November 2023 (-1.1%).

The sales value of export-oriented industries which representing nearly 70 per cent of total sales, further declined by 8.4 per cent in December 2023 after shrinking by 6.9 per cent in November 2023. The decrease was predominantly attributable to the drop in the Manufacture of coke & refined petroleum products at negative 24.9 per cent, followed by the Manufacture of vegetable & animal oils & fats (-8.6%); and the Manufacture of computer, electronics & optical products (-4.8 %). 

The domestic-oriented industries remained upbeat by recording a positive growth of 6.7 per cent in December 2023 (November 2023: 8.8%) primarily underpinned by the sturdy expansion in the Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery & equipment at 11.5 per cent. Additionally, the Manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers & semi-trailers experienced a growth of 8.0 per cent; while the Manufacture of food processing products  increased by 6.8 per cent. On a month-on-month basis, both export and domestic-oriented industries dropped by 3.9 per cent and 1.8 per cent respectively.

The Manufacturing sector engaged 2.37 million employees in December 2023, an increase of 1.7 per cent as compared to the 2.34 million persons registered in December 2022. The addition was largely contributed by the Food, beverages & tobacco (5.9%); Non-metallic mineral products, basic metal & fabricated metal products (2.3%); and Wood, furniture, paper products & printing (2.2%) sub-sectors. As compared to the preceding month, the number of employees in this sector declined marginally by 0.1 per cent.

The salaries & wages paid in the Manufacturing sector also posted an increase of 2.1 per cent year-on-year, amounting to RM8.7 billion in December 2023. As compared to November 2023, the salaries & wages paid grew by 7.3 per cent as against the slight growth of 0.04 per cent registered in the preceding month. Furthermore, the sales value per employee decreased by 5.8 per cent to record RM63,121 while the average salaries & wages per employee in December 2023 was RM3,683 which rose by 0.5 per cent year-on-year.

In the fourth quarter of 2023, the sales value of the Manufacturing sector continued to decelerate for three consecutive quarters, declining by 2.7 per cent year-on-year to reach RM461.5 billion (Q3 2023: -2.9%). The decrease was attributed to the Petroleum, chemical, rubber & plastics products (-11.2%); and Electrical & electronics products (-4.2%) sub-sectors. On the other hand, the number of employees and salaries & wages paid during the quarter slowed down to 1.7 per cent (Q3 2023: 2.4%) and 2.9 per cent (Q3 2023: 3.0%) respectively.

Summarising the overall performance for the year 2023, the sales value of the Manufacturing sector reaching RM1.8 trillion, increased marginally by 0.2 per cent as against 2022 (15.8%). During the year, the number of employees increased by 1.7 per cent to record a total of 2.37 million persons while salaries & wages rose by 3.5 per cent to RM97.8 billion. Moreover, the sales value per employee registered a decline of 1.5 per cent, amounting to RM759,735.

The full publication of the Monthly Manufacturing Statistics, December 2023 can be downloaded through eStatistik portal.

Released by:

DEPARTMENT OF STATISTICS MALAYSIA

7 February 2024