Malaysia April headline exports improve, still remain below market expectations

Malaysia’s April headline exports have improved from that in March, albeit remaining below market expectations on higher overseas demand. Imports fell on account of softer domestic consumption growth, while the overall trade balance ticked higher.

The headline exports figure registered 1.6 percent y/y in the month. Though this is an improvement from 0.2 percent in the previous month, it fell short of market expectation for a 2.0 percent rise. Imports fell by 2.3 percent on account of softer domestic consumption growth while overall trade balance clocked a surplus of MYR 9.1 billion.

Against a backdrop of fluctuating global environment, the improvement is not too bad, given that the demand picture remains gloomy within the domestic economy. Also, sluggish demand from overseas players like China due to its own economic slowdown has weighed on exports demand in Malaysia.

However, there have been certain improvements. Except for LNG, all key export products recorded expansion to various degree. In addition, there has been a positive price effect from refined petroleum products. Sales from this product surged by 34.4 percent, up from -3.4 percent in the previous month as oil prices rose in the month and provided significant valuation lift to the number, DBS report showed.