Thailand's manufacturing production activity expands for first time in 23 months; intensifies Covid-19 controls

A health worker administers a dose of the CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine, developed by Chinas Sinovac Ltd., to an Airports of Thailand Pcl employee at a vaccination site set up at a near-empty Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, April 30, 2021. Thailand is reworking its vaccine strategy as a month-long soft lockdown to contain its worst wave of Covid-19 infections deepens an economic crisis and risks plans for reopening the crucial tourism industry. - Bloomberg

BANGKOK, April 28 (Xinhua): Thailand's manufacturing production index (MPI), a gauge of manufacturing activity, rose for the first time in 23 months to 107.73 in March, the highest level in two years, official data has showed.

The MPI rose 4.12 percent from a year earlier, in its strongest growth since October 2018, according to the Office of Industrial Economics.