KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 — The Producer Price Index (PPI) rose by 1.6 per cent on year in June, from 1.4 per cent in May, said the Statistics Department.
In the latest monthly PPI Local Production report, chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said all sectors registered an increase for a fourth consecutive month since March.
He said the mining sector rose by 4.6 per cent from 6.6 per cent in May, contributed by the extraction of natural gas and crude petroleum (up 4.6 per cent and 4.5 per cent, respectively).
The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector climbed to 3.4 per cent from 1.3 per cent the previous month, contributed by the indices of growing of perennial crops (7.5 per cent) and animal production (1.7 per cent).
The manufacturing sector edged up by 1.1 per cent from 1 per cent in May, driven by the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products index (9.2 per cent).
Meanwhile, for the utility sector, the water supply index jumped 7.8 per cent in June versus 8.7 per cent in May, while the electricity and gas supply index increased by 1 per cent compared to 1.5 per in the preceding month.
On a month-on-month basis, Uzir said the PPI for local production slipped by 0.1 per cent in June against -0.9 per cent in May due to lower mining sector of 3.4 per cent (May: -5.5 per cent), attributed to extraction of natural gas (-3.7 per cent) and extraction of crude petroleum (-3.3 per cent) indices.
The chief statistician said the average monthly price for crude palm oil (CPO) was about RM3,960 per tonne in June, up from RM3,900 per tonne in May.
He noted the rise in CPO price was due to anticipated limited supply from Malaysia and Indonesia towards year-end, coupled with the hike in palm oil exports.
— Bernama
