VALUE of orders-on-hand for local production by electronics' makers surged by about a third on a year-on-year basis, well ahead of manufacturing as a whole, according to the Census and Statistics Department.
Releasing provisional results of a monthly survey, it said total value of manufacturers' orders-on-hand for local production in March lagged the electronics sector, increasing seven per cent year-on-year.
Other sectors where the value of orders increased were the electrical products industry, which was up seven per cent, and the apparel industry, up five per cent.
The fabricated metal products industry recorded a year-on-year drop of 24 per cent in the value of orders-on-hand for local production, while textile orders fell 20 per cent.
The department said the plastic products industry was down two per cent, while printing and publishing was little changed.
The monthly survey covers about 300 manufacturing firms which employ 50 or more workers.