Thai April factory output rises 0.56% y/y, below forecast

BANGKOK : Thailand's factory output in April rose at a smaller pace than expected as higher costs continued to affect production, despite improved economic activity, the industry ministry said on Monday.

The manufacturing production index (MPI) rose 0.56 per cent in April year-on-year, below a forecast rise of 1.6 per cent in a Reuters poll and against March's 0.44 per cent increase.

Factory output, however, should continue to be underpinned by increased domestic activity following an easing of COVID-19 curbs, while a weak baht further boost manufacturing exports, ministry official Thongchai Chawalitpichaet told a briefing.

In April, production of cars, oil, and rubber products rose while output of hard disk drives dropped due to a shortage of materials over China's pandemic lockdown measures, the ministry said

In January-April, the MPI index rose 1.37 per cent from a year earlier. Industrial goods account for about 80 per cent of total exports.