PH factory output down for 12 consecutive months until November 2019
The output of Philippine factories fell for the 12th straight month in November as the country produced fewer pieces of furniture, equipment and machinery, as well as metal and petroleum products.
The Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) latest initial Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries (Missi) report released on Tuesday (Jan. 7) showed that the volume of production index (VoPI) declined 6.1 percent last November.
VoPI—a proxy for manufacturing output—has been declining year-on-year since December 2018.
The contraction in November’s VoPI was the biggest in three months, or since August 2019’s 10-percent drop.
The PSA said declines in output in eight major industry groups dragged down overall factory production.
Output in furniture and fixtures fell 41.2 percent, basic metals by 29.5 percent, miscellaneous items by 22.1 percent, petroleum products by 21.8 percent, transport equipment by 16.7 percent and electrical machinery by 13 percent, the PSA said.
The same set of data, however, showed production gains in these industries—food manufacturing, printing, machinery, chemical products, footwear and apparel, fabricated metal, beverage, tobacco, leather products, paper, wood, rubber and plastics.
The value of production index (VaPI) likewise slid for the 12th consecutive month, contracting by 5.8 percent in November 2019, also the fastest year-on-year drop in three months.
The PSA said two-digit declines were reported in five key industry groups—basic metals (36.2 percent), petroleum products (25.6 percent), miscellaneous (20.7 percent), transport equipment (20.6 percent) and electrical machinery (16.6 percent).
Value produced by these sectors also fell last November—textiles, wood, furniture and fixtures and paper.
PSA officials on Tuesday (Jan. 7) said that the agency will tweak its Missi methodology to reflect a more recent base year—the year-on-year growth rates were currently being measured compared with the year 2000.
