KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s economy grew 5.9% in the fourth-quarter of 2017 (4Q17) boosted by the stronger private sector demand.
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) said the gross domestic product (GDP) growth was further supported by the external sector, while on the supply side, all economic sectors continued to expand except for mining. For the full year, the domestic economy expanded 5.9%, a huge jump compared to 4.2% recorded in 2016. Malaysia’s economy grew at 5.6% in 1Q17, 5.8% in 2Q17 and 6.2% in 3Q17.
Headline inflation moderated to 3.5% in the final three months of 2017 compared to 3.6% in 3Q17, mainly due to lower inflation in the housing, water, electricity and gas, and transport categories.
For the whole year, headline inflation averaged at 3.7%, up from 2.1% in 2016.
The central bank said economic growth is expected to remain favourable in 2018, with domestic demand continuing to be the key driver of growth.
The expected faster expansion in global growth would continue to benefit Malaysia’s exports, with positive spillovers to the domestic economic activity.
