Malaysia Trade Surplus Shrinks As Export Growth Slows To 6%

(RTTNews) - Malaysia's trade surplus increased in December as export growth eased sharply, data from the statistical office showed on Wednesday.

The trade surplus dropped to MYR 27.76 billion in December from MYR 31.48 billion in the same month last year. In November, the trade surplus was MYR 21.75 billion.

Exports increased 6.0 percent yearly in December, much slower than the 15.1 percent surge in November.

The overall increase in exports was mainly driven by re-exports, up 25.5 percent, while domestic exports rose only 2.0 percent from a year ago.

Imports rose 12.0 percent annually in December, after a 15.6 percent growth in the previous month. Nonetheless, this was the slowest pace of growth since August last year.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, exports grew 1.7 percent monthly in December, while imports fell 3.4 percent.

During the year 2022, the total trade surplus of the country reached an all-time high of MYR 255.1 billion, and posted the surplus for the 25th consecutive year since 1998.