KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 9): Malaysia's industrial production index rose 2.3 percent in September from a year earlier, slightly faster than the previous month, supported by gains in the manufacturing and electricity generation sectors, government data showed on Friday.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast September's output growth to remain unchanged at 2.2 percent for a second month in a row.

The index measures factory output from the manufacturing, electricity generation and mining sectors.

Manufacturing output grew 4.8 percent year-on-year in September, while the electricity generation sectoral index rose 4.2 percent, data from the Statistics Department showed.

Mining output, however, declined for a fifth straight month, falling 6.2 percent.

Malaysia's exports rebounded in September from a drop in the previous month, driven by demand for manufactured and mining goods.