October factory output falls 0.54%, less than forecast

Thailand’s manufacturing production index (MPI) dropped a smaller-than-expected 0.54% in October from a year earlier, with lower production of cars and clothes amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Industry Ministry said on Friday.

That compares with a forecast for a decline of 1.80% in a Reuters poll, and against September’s revised fall of 2.15%.

Capacity utilisation in October was 63.2% after September’s revised 63.46%, it added.

The ministry also forecast the MPI index would fall 8% this year, having projected an 8-9% drop. It expects the index to rise 4.0-5.0% next year.

Industrial goods account for about 80% of total exports, a key driver of Thai growth.