Malaysia’s manufacturing sector recorded a sales value of RM158.7 billion in May 2025, marking a 2.4% increase year-on-year, according to the latest data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). This growth, however, represents a deceleration from the 4.7% expansion observed in April 2025.
On a month-on-month basis, the manufacturing sector’s sales value slightly decreased by 1.1% from RM160.4 billion in April 2025 to RM158.7 billion in May 2025.
The primary driver of this growth was the Food, Beverages & Tobacco sub-sector, which continued its strong performance with a 13.0% increase in sales. This follows a robust 10.8% growth in the previous month, highlighting sustained demand in this segment. Supporting contributions also came from the Electrical & Electronics (E&E) products sub-sector, which saw a 5.0% rise, and the Non-metallic mineral products, basic metal & fabricated metal products sub-sectors, which grew by 3.7%.
Export-Oriented Industries Show Resilience
Export-oriented industries, which constitute a significant 71.1% of total manufacturing sales, grew by 2.7% in May 2025, albeit a moderation from the 5.1% growth in April. This performance was largely propelled by a substantial 15.9% increase in the Manufacture of vegetable & animal oils & fats. The Manufacture of computer, electronics & optical products expanded by 4.9%, and the Manufacture of machinery and equipment n.e.c. advanced by 7.7%. Encouragingly, on a month-on-month comparison, export-oriented industries rebounded with a marginal 0.1% increase, recovering from a 3.3% contraction in April.
Domestic-Oriented Industries Maintain Expansion
The domestic-oriented industries also continued their expansion, growing by 1.9% in May 2025, following a 3.6% rise in April. This was underpinned by strong growth in the Manufacture of food processing products at 10.5%, along with solid performances in the Manufacture of basic metals (4.3%) and Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery & equipment (3.5%). However, these industries saw a 3.9% decline on a month-on-month basis.
Employment and Wages See Modest Increases
Total employment in the manufacturing sector reached 2.40 million persons in May 2025, increasing by 0.9% year-on-year. The growth in employment was mainly seen in the Food, beverages & tobacco (1.8%), Non-metallic mineral products, basic metal & fabricated metal products (1.4%), and Electrical & electronics products (1.1%) sub-sectors. On a month-on-month basis, the number of employees saw a marginal decrease of 0.1%.
Salaries and wages paid in the sector amounted to RM8.3 billion, an increase of 1.6% from May 2024. The average salaries & wages per employee rose by 0.7% year-on-year to RM3,470, while the sales value per employee stood at RM66,163, up by 1.6%.
Cumulative Growth for First Five Months
For the period of January to May 2025, the manufacturing sector’s sales value amounted to RM794.7 billion, representing a 3.8% increase compared to the same period in 2024. During this five-month period, the number of employees rose by 0.9% to 2.40 million, and salaries & wages increased by 1.9% to RM41.9 billion. The sales value per employee for the first five months of the year recorded a growth of 2.9%, reaching RM331,327.
