KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry (MITI) will continue its efforts to enhance trade, attract investments, and advance the country’s industrial sector.
Its Minister, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, citing advance estimates from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM), said that Malaysia’s economy grew by 5.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2024, up from 4.2 per cent in the previous quarter.
This growth is the highest since the fourth quarter of 2022 (7.4 per cent), he said in a post on X on Friday.
He said for the first half of 2024, GDP increased by 5.0 per cent compared to 4.1 per cent in the same period last year.
The estimated growth for the second quarter is in line with recent indicators such as the Industrial Production Index, which rose by 6.1 per cent and 2.4 per cent in April and May 2024 respectively compared to the previous year.
The manufacturing sector also expanded to 4.7 per cent from 1.9 per cent in the previous quarter.
Malaysia’s trade has consistently grown since January 2024, recording an 8.7 per cent year-on-year increase in June 2024 to RM237.81 billion.
Exports registered growth for the third consecutive month, rising by 1.7 per cent to RM126.05 billion.
The trade surplus, which amounted to RM14.29 billion, marks the 50th consecutive month of surplus since May 2020.
