BANGKOK, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's industrial output extended its contraction for a fifth consecutive month in December 2024 due to a prolonged decline in auto production, weak domestic demand and high manufacturing costs, official data showed on Friday.

The manufacturing production index (MPI) fell 2.11 percent last month from a year earlier, easing from a revised 3.39 percent decrease in November, according to the Ministry of Industry.

The Southeast Asian country's auto production tumbled 22.79 percent year on year in December as domestic sales of pickup trucks and passenger cars slowed on the back of high household debt and tightening credit conditions, the ministry said in a statement.

For the whole of 2024, the MPI shrank 1.79 percent year-on-year, decelerating from a 3.77 percent drop in the previous year, said the ministry's Office of Industrial Economics Director-General Passakorn Chairat.

Meanwhile, the average capacity utilization rate stood at 58.44 percent, down from 59.61 percent recorded in 2023, reflecting sluggish growth in the Thai economy, Passakorn told a news conference. Enditem

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