KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's trade recorded a double digit growth in May, up 10.3 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to RM246.31 billion,  the highest value recorded since October 2022.

Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) said this marked the fifth consecutive month of YoY expansion.

Exports expanded 7.3 per cent to RM128.22billion and imports grew 13.8 per cent to RM118.09 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of RM10.14 billion and the 49th consecutive month of surplus since May 2020.

"The growth in exports was contributed mainly by strong exports of electrical andelectronic (E&E) products, palm oil and palm oil-based agriculture products,manufactures of metal, optical and scientific equipment as well as iron and steel products," Miti said in a statement today.

Exports of E&E products sustained positive growth for the second consecutive month," the ministry said in a note.

It added signs of economic recovery in the nation's key export markets were seen where exports to major trading partners namely Asean,  China, the United States (US), the European Union (EU) and Japan recorded increases.

Exports to Asean and the US grew significantly with double-digit expansion.

Similarly, exports to Free Trade Agreement (FTA) partners increased by 4.5 per cent YoY to RM87.64 billion. Among the FTA partners that registered export expansion were Mexico and Canada, driven by higher exports of E&E products.

"Trade, exports and imports during the first five months of 2024 recorded the highestperiodic values. Trade grew by 8.7 per cent to RM1.158 trillion compared to the correspondingperiod in 2023. Exports increased by 4.5 per cent to RM605.25 billion and imports were higher by 13.7 per cent to RM553.24 billion. Trade surplus of RM52.01 billion were posted for the period," said Miti.

On a month-on-month comparison, trade, exports, imports and trade surplus recorded double-digit growth of 11.1 per cent,  11.8 per cent, 10.4 per cent and 30.9 per cent respectively compared to April. Meanwhile, World Bank estimatedMalaysia's gross domestic product (GFP) growth to edge up by 4.3 per cent in 2024.

World Bank in its June 2024 Global Economic Prospects Report, projected global GDP to increase by 2.6 per cent in 2024, amid stronger than expected economic performance in the US.

It also "Moving forward, Malaysia's manufacturing sector is poised for positive growth in 2024,supported by industrial reforms spearheaded by MITI and a promising uptick in global semiconductor demand projections.

"Recently, the World Semiconductors TradeStatistics (WSTS) forecast that the global semiconductor market will see a robustgrowth of 16 per cent in 2024 on the back of stronger performance in computing end-markets," added the ministry.

https://www.nst.com.my/business/economy/2024/06/1065926/malaysias-trade-103pct-may-highest-value-oct-2022