20-1-2024 (KUALA LUMPUR) Official data released on Friday by the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) revealed that Malaysia’s exports contracted by 8 percent year-on-year to 1.43 trillion ringgit (300 billion U.S. dollars) in 2023. The decline in exports was attributed to slower global demand.
The total trade of Malaysia in 2023 also experienced a decrease of 7.3 percent year-on-year, amounting to 2.64 trillion ringgit (about 560 billion dollars). This downward trend can be attributed to various factors including sluggish global demand, lower commodity prices, geopolitical uncertainties, a high inflation rate, a downturn in the semiconductor sector, and the high base effect from the previous year.
Furthermore, Malaysia’s imports for the year weakened by 6.4 percent, reaching 1.21 trillion ringgit (about 256 billion dollars). Despite the challenging trade environment, Malaysia managed to maintain a trade surplus of 214.1 billion ringgit (about 45.4 billion dollars) in 2023.
