Malaysia Trade Surplus Shrinks On Slower Export Growth

(RTTNews) - Malaysia's trade surplus decreased slightly at the start of the year, as export growth eased notably, data from the statistical office showed on Monday.

The trade surplus dropped to MYR 18.16 billion in January from MYR 18.56 billion in the same month last year. In December, the trade surplus was MYR 28.14 billion.

Exports increased 1.6 percent yearly in January, slower than the 5.9 percent surge in the previous month.

The overall increase in exports was mainly driven by re-exports, up 33.5 percent, while domestic exports dropped 5.4 percent from a year ago.

Within total exports, manufacturing products contributed a major share of outflows, at 83.3 percent. This was followed by a 9.5 percent share of mining related goods.

Imports rose 2.3 percent annually in January, well below the 11.5 percent growth in the previous month. Nonetheless, this was the slowest pace of growth since early 2021.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, both exports and imports fell by 8.5 percent and 7.7 percent, respectively, from a month earlier. 

At the start of the year, Malaysia's top trading partners were China, Singapore, and the United States.