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Thailand’s industrial output during the month of May picked up for the third straight month in a row, as major industries continued to boost manufacturing activity. However, the recovery remains fragile with both exports and domestic consumption being sluggish.
Thailand's manufacturing production index rose 2.6 percent from previous year's figure in May, as compared with a 0.89 percent increase in April, the Office of Industrial Economics at the Ministry of Industry said Thursday. A Reuters poll had forecast a rise of 1.85 per cent.
Sequentially, the Thai MPI rose 12.69 percent in May, reversing a revised 17.99 percent fall in April. Further, data showed Thailand's automotive production jumped 24.69 percent in May, while electronics and electrical appliance manufacturing rose 4.49 percent and rubber production increased 9.84 percent.
The improvement in production has offset declines in other sectors, including textile and apparels, which fell 9.1 percent and 2.86 percent, respectively, and food, which dropped 5.5 percent. Meanwhile, Thailand's capacity utilization, which measures industrial slack, rose to 67.45 percent in May, as compared with a revised 59.52 percent the preceding month.
In addition, in April, output rose a revised 0.89 percent from a year earlier, instead of the 1.54 percent reported a month earlier. Industrial goods accounted for nearly 79 percent of total exports in May, which declined 4.4 percent from a year earlier, customs data showed.
