Factory output recovers in 2021

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s manufacturing output continued to improve, although still at a slower pace in December, bringing full-year 2021 growth to a significant recovery from a decline a year earlier.

Factory output, as measured by the Volume of Production Index (VoPI), went up by 17.9 percent in December, slower than the 25.8 percent in November, but still better than the 14.8 percent contraction in December 2020.

Nonetheless, VoPI recovered for the whole of 2021, climbing 50.3 percent from the 40.5 percent decline during the first year of the pandemic in 2020.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said for most of 2021, manufacturing expanded, although gains started to fade toward the fourth quarter as the low base effects dwindled.

Still, the economy was much more open in 2021 than in 2020, with the government implementing lesser restrictions compared to wide-scale lockdowns in the first months of the pandemic.

Eleven out of the 22 industry groups covered by the index registered growth last December, led by the manufacture of wood, bamboo, cane, rattan articles and related products, which grew 122.6 percent.

The manufacture of machinery and equipment as well as electrical both went up 50 percent.

Most industry groups posted double-digit increases, including coke and refined petroleum products (48 percent), computer, electronic and optical products (27 percent), non-metallic mineral products (37 percent), food products (32 percent) and fabricated metal products (40 percent). Other gainers include leather products and textiles.

Contractions, meanwhile, were also recorded, led by basic pharmaceutical products and preparations at 30.2 percent.

Other declines were in transport equipment, rubber and plastic products, chemical products, beverages, wearing apparel, paper and paper products, basic metals, tobacco products, furniture, and printing and reproduction of recorded media.

Growth in the Value of Production Index (VaPI) likewise eased to 18.6 percent in December from 27.2 percent in November. But it contracted 18 percent compared to the same period in 2020.

For the entire 2021, VaPI rebounded by 47 percent from the 43 percent downturn in 2020.

Further, capacity utilization on the average slightly cooled to 67.3 percent from 67.8 percent.

Twenty of the 22 industry groups had at least 50 percent average capacity utilization rate, led by the manufacture of furniture, other non-metallic mineral products, and tobacco products.

Just close to a quarter or 23.3 percent of responding establishments operated at full capacity.