Thai June factory output falls 3.1% y/y, weaker than forecast

BANGKOK: Thailand’s manufacturing production index dropped 3. 1% in June from a year earlier, the industry ministry said on Monday, weaker than analysts’ forecasts. The June reading compared with a forecast increase of 0. 2% in a Reuters poll. The May reading was revised to a fall of 1. 3% from an original figure of a 0. 8% drop. The main drags on the MPI were weaker automobile and petroleum production, while tensions in the Middle East added pressure from volatile energy and freight costs, the ministry said. Car production dropped 7. 55% in June from a year earlier, according to the Federation of Thai Industries. Palm oil production also fell 33. 2% year-on-year, Supakit Boonsiri, head of the ministry’s industrial economics office, told a briefing. Thai factory output falls for 18th consecutive month The manufacturing production index from January to June fell 0. 4% year-on-year, he said. The industry ministry has maintained its forecast for factory output to rise 1. 0% to 2. 0% this year. Key external risks are a prolonged Middle East conflict and US tariffs, the ministry said. Bright spots include continued growth in demand for electronics and technology-related products, it said. ‐Reuters

Read full story on Business Recorder