Malaysia's manufacturing sector sales reached RM921.5 billion in the January-June 2024 period, increasing by 3.7 per cent versus the 3.5 per cent growth in the same period a year ago, said the Statistics Department Malaysia (DoSM). Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the sector's headcount was up by 1.0 per cent to a total of 2.37 million, while salaries and wages grew by 1.3 per cent to RM49.3 billion. 'Sales value per employee was RM388,904, a 2.7 per cent growth,' he said in the June Monthly Manufacturing Statistics report released today. The second quarter of 2024 (2Q 2024) registered sales of RM464.2 billion, reflecting a growth of 5.7 per cent (1Q 2024: 1.8 per cent), which was attributed to the electrical and electronics products (7.3 per cent) and the food, beverages and tobacco (8.2 per cent) sub-sectors. 'Furthermore, the number of employees, and salaries and wages paid during the quarter went up by 1.0 per cent (1Q 2024: 0.5 per cent) and 1.4 per cent (1Q 2024: 1.2 per cent), respectively,' he added. Mohd Uzir said sales for the sector remained on steady growth with a 5.9 per cent rise to reach RM156.1 billion in June 2024, primarily driven by the electrical and electronics products sub-sector, which grew by 7.1 per cent after registering a 12.2 per cent growth in May 2024. 'The growth was also supported by the food, beverages and tobacco sub-sector, with an increase of 8.6 per cent; and non-metallic mineral products, basic metal and fabricated metal products, which rose by 11.1 per cent. 'On a month-on-month basis, the sales value grew by 0.8 per cent from RM154.9 billion in May 2024,' he said. He said sales value for the export-oriented industries, which accounted for 73.1 per cent, continued to expand at a faster pace of 6.0 per cent in June 2024 (May 2024: 4.6 per cent), while domestic-oriented industries grew a modest 5.5 per cent (May 2024: 7.9 per cent) due to 5.2 per cent decline in motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers sales. 'There were 2.37 million employee s in the manufacturing sector in June 2024, a 1.0 per cent increase compared to 0.9 per cent in May 2024,' Mohd Uzir said. Salaries and wages rose by 1.8 per cent to total RM8.20 billion in June 2024, he added. Source: BERNAMA News Agency