US manufacturing cools but Malaysia and globally factories take Omicron risks in their stride for now

Other parts of Asia also fared well with manufacturing activity expanding in countries ranging from Vietnam to Malaysia and the Philippines.(File pic: Workers packing cooking oil at a factory in Klang. - AZHAR MAHFOF/The Star)

LONDON/TOKYO: Global manufacturing activity remained strong in December as factories took rising cases of the new Omicron coronavirus variant in their stride, although persistent supply constraints and rising costs clouded the outlook for some economies.

Rising global infections have inspired policymakers to tread carefully, with outbreaks in China forcing some firms to suspend production and threatening to disrupt output for memory chip giants, such as Samsung Electronics https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/samsung-micron-warn-chinas-xian-lockdown-idUSKBN2J81L3.