Bilyonaryo - Business

S&P Global: Philippine manufacturing sector expands in May

June 1, 2023

Bilyonaryo.com

The country’s manufacturing sector continued to expand in May, fueled by accelerated growth in factory orders and manufacturing output, according to a report by S&P Global.

Increasing from April’s eight-month low of 51.4 to 52.2 in May, the headline S&P Global Philippines Manufacturing PMI, a composite single-figure indicator of manufacturing performance, signalled a quicker improvement in operating conditions across the Philippines goods-producing sector, the report said.

“The upturn was supported by a solid rise in both output and factory orders, with firms also expanding their workforce numbers for the first time in four months,” said Maryam Baluch, Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Baluch said vendor performance improved for the first time in almost four years, with companies reporting that improved logistics routes led to shorter delivery times.

While the latest data acknowledged a reintensification of price pressures in May, it highlighted that inflation rates remained below historical averages.

Looking ahead, firms expressed overall optimism regarding future output, although confidence levels dipped slightly to an 11-month low, Baluch said.