KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s exports expanded 5.0% year-over-year in June, the fastest pace in a year, thanks to a surge in the shipments of electronics and palm oil that helped to cushion the plunge in natural gas and crude oil, official data showed Wednesday.
A survey of nine economists by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a median 0.4% contraction in June from a year earlier. In May, exports contracted 6.7% from a year earlier.
Exports totaled 64.26 billion ringgit ($16.59 billion) in June, compared with 61.23 billion ringgit a year earlier, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry said in a statement.
Shipments of electronic products, which make up about a third of total exports, rose 13% in June while palm oil exports climbed 22%. Exports of crude petroleum and natural gas plunged 34% and 45%, respectively.
Exports to China–Malaysia’s largest trading partner–jumped 49% while exports to the U.S. and European Union rose 9.5% and 16%, respectively.
Imports in May declined 1.5% year-over-year to 56.28 billion ringgit, the ministry said. Economists in the poll had forecast a median 3.1% contraction from a year earlier. This compares with May’s 7.2% year-over-year decline in imports.
The decline in June imports was led by a 17% fall in capital goods while intermediate goods decreased by 2.4%. However, imports of consumption goods increased by 37%.
Malaysia’s trade surplus in May widened to 7.98 billion ringgit from 5.51 billion ringgit in May, the ministry added.
