-- The Philippines' producer price index (PPI) for manufacturing rose 2.5% year over year in March, accelerating from a 1.4% increase in February, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed Thursday.
The pickup was driven mainly by an 8.7% rise in the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products, up from 3.6% in the previous month.
Faster growth in the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products at 5.3%, along with a 4.3% increase in basic metals, also supported the expansion.
Meanwhile, PPI growth for food manufacturing eased to 0.7% in March from 0.9% in February, the data showed.