KUALA LUMPUR: The Producer Price Index (PPI) for local production rose 12.6% year-on-year in November 2021, compared to a 3.0% decline in the same month last year, mainly in due to soaring raw material costs, Malaysia’s Department of Statistics said.

Chief statistician Datuk Sri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the increase in November 2021 was mainly attributed to the mining index which climbed 71.2%, compared to a drop of 45.8% in November 2020, due to the rising crude oil and natural gas prices.

“The agriculture, forestry and fisheries index is also increasing but at a slower rate of 19.1% (November 2020: 21.5%), largely due to the increase in the indices bunches of fresh palm oil fruits (25.2%), chicken (18.1%) and chicken eggs (8.3%), “he said in a statement today.

In addition, he said, the manufacturing index rose 8.4% in November 2021, thanks to the indices of the refined petroleum products manufacturing (26.2%) and petroleum manufacturing sub-sectors. ‘vegetable and animal oils and fats (21.9%), while the water supply index increased slightly by 0.2 percent and the electricity and gas supply index increased decreased by 0.3 percent.

In terms of month-to-month comparison, Mohd Uzir said local PPI production increased 1.4% in November 2021, driven by a 5.9% increase in the agriculture index. , forestry and fishing, mainly due to the growth indices of perennials. crops (8.3 percent), cultivation of non-perennial crops (3.0 percent) and animal production (1.2 percent).

“The oil palm fresh fruit cluster index has remained virtually unchanged due to concerns over insufficient migrant labor on Malaysian plantations.

“On the other hand, the price of crude oil has fallen due to the discovery of a new variant of COVID-19 named Omicron which was first detected in South Africa, raising fears of its spread. , thus slowing demand for the raw material. This contributed to a 2.3% drop in the mining index against a 5.5% increase recorded last month, “he said.

In addition, he said, the manufacturing index rose 1.3 percent, mainly due to an increase in manufacturing indices for vegetable and animal oils and fats (2.9 percent) , manufacturing of refined petroleum products (2.4 percent), manufacturing of basic chemicals, fertilizers and nitrogen compounds, plastics and synthetic rubber in their primary forms (1.2 percent) and basic iron and steel manufacturing subsectors (1.1 percent).

“The utilities index showed that the electricity and gas supply index fell 0.3%, while the water supply index rose 0.9%,” he added.

Commenting on commodity prices which have skyrocketed recently, Mohd Uzir said that due to the cold weather, strong winds coupled with heavy rains in most places in Malaysia have become the factors behind the rising costs. basic products, in particular vegetables.

“An insufficient number of workers in the plantation areas also reduced production, leading to supply disruptions leading to higher prices.

“Recently heavy downpours have caused massive flooding in several states. The floods have destroyed most crops and can therefore lead to supply chain disruptions that are leading to pressure on prices,” he said. -he declares. -Bernama