Philippine manufacturing shrank in July 2025 as a slower increase in food production weighed on the sector, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said Tuesday.
The volume of production index (VoPI) decreased 1.1 percent year-on-year, while the value of production index (VaPI) fell 1.3 percent in July, the PSA said.
This reversed a 1.6-percent increase in VoPI and a 1.2-percent gain in VaPI in June, data from the PSA showed.
The downtrend in the year-on-year growth rate of VoPI was largely due to a slowdown in food output, which increased 16.5 percent in July, compared to 22.4 percent in June.
Other contributing factors were a slower increase in electronic and optical products, at 5.0 percent in July versus 7.3 percent in June, and a slower increase in transport equipment, at 9.3 percent in July versus 13.0 percent in June.
Data showed that 10 of the remaining 19 industry divisions posted annual decrements in July.
The downtrend in the annual rate of VaPI was also attributed to the slowdown in food production and a faster decrease in the manufacture of chemicals.
The average capacity utilization rate for the manufacturing sector was 77.1 percent in July, up from 76.6 percent in June.
All industry divisions reported capacity utilization rates of more than 60 percent during the month. The top three were the manufacture of tobacco products at 85.1 percent, other manufacturing, repair and installation of machinery and equipment at 83.4 percent and the manufacture of leather and related products, including footwear at 83.0 percent.
