Thai manufacturing growth speeds up

The Nikkei Thailand Manufacturing PMI™ edged up to 50.6 in January from 50.4 in December, marking the best monthly improvement in nearly a year.

Most encouraging were the survey indications of a firming of demand for Thai manufactured products at the start of the year. Export sales returned to growth for the first time in four months.

Although down from December, the rate of output expansion remained above the survey average since data collection started in December 2015.

The upturn also engendered a rise in pre-production stocks for the first time since February 2017, which boosted the headline PMI. Inventory building reflected indications that Thai businesses were feeling more confident about output in the year ahead. The Future Output Index rose to the highest in just over a year

Source: Nikkei Thailand Manufacturing PMI