THE manufacturing sector likely grew faster at 12 percent in April over the 11.1 percent expansion a month ago, driven mainly by increasing demand for locally-manufactured products overseas, Moody’s Analytics, a unit of Moody’s Corp., said in a report Friday.
“… The archipelago’s manufacturing sector has received a boost in recent months from the uptick in global demand. In particular, this should boost electronics manufacturers,” Moody’s said.
“Domestic demand continues to be the main driver of production growth though, as rising incomes fuel consumer spending. Infrastructure projects, both public and private, are supporting industrial production,” it said.
The manufacturing sector in March grew 11.1 percent, faster than 8.2 percent a year ago, due to the increased production in petroleum products, food and transport equipment.
Government data showed the Value of Production (VaPI) rose 12.2 percent in March 2017 from 0.8 percent during the same period in the previous year.
“We must continue to foster a competitive and innovative environment to help the manufacturing sector realize its full potential as a growth driver,” National Economic and Development Authority officer-in-charge and Undersecretary Rolando Tungpalan said in a statement.
“The sector is expected to benefit from the sustained growth economic momentum and increasing infrastructure and human capital investments. It can also benefit from the country’s ‘BBB-’ or ‘good quality rating’ with a positive outlook for both foreign and local currency denominated obligations,” he said.
Food manufactures posted a growth of 23.4 percent in volume and 20.0 percent in value of production. Tungpalan attributed the rise to sustained domestic demand for basic goods, especially food and beverages.
For intermediate goods, petroleum products soared in both volume and value of production registering a growth of 61.5 and 94.9 percent, recovering from its contraction in the same period last year.