KUALA LUMPUR, November 26 – Malaysia’s economy is expected to improve over the next few months despite setbacks in the previous quarter of 2021 due to the implementation of the Movement Control Order (MCO) for the purpose of mitigate the spread of Covid-19 infections.

In the latest Review of Malaysia’s Economic Statistics (MESR), the chief statistician of Malaysia’s Department of Statistics (DoSM), Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin, said that with the continued recovery as the country transitioned As the national recovery plan (PNR) continues, businesses have started to regain confidence. in the market after registering -0.3 percent in the confidence indicator against -21.3 percent in the previous quarter.

“This could signal a strong recovery momentum towards the fourth quarter of the year and into 2022, when Malaysia’s GDP (gross domestic product) is expected to be on track to achieve the expected growth of three to four percent, sustained by the high vaccination rate of Malaysian population, continued political support and strong external demands, ”he said.

The latest report mentioned that the country’s GDP contracted 4.5% in the third quarter despite positive growth of 16.1% in the second quarter of 2021.

However, he said the country’s economy grew 3% in the first nine months of 2021, down from a contraction of 6.4% in the same period last year.

“The performance in terms of supply was influenced by the decline in all key sectors of the economy, in particular in the service sector which fell 4.9% in this quarter after growing by 13, 5% and the manufacturing sector which recorded a marginal decline. 0.8 percent compared to 26.6 percent growth in the previous quarter, ”he added.

Mohd Uzir said Malaysia’s current account balance recorded a surplus of RM11.6 billion in Q3-21, compared to RM14.6 billion in the previous quarter, due to a higher deficit in the accounts. revenues.

He added that the merchandise account recorded a larger surplus of RM41.2 billion as exports declined at a slower pace than imports, which ultimately contributed to an increase in net exports during this period. quarter, which in turn supported the current account surplus.

In terms of investment performance, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Malaysia continued to register an inflow of 12.8 billion ringgit against 8.2 billion ringgit while foreign direct investment (DIA ) rose to a net inflow of Ringgit 4.7 billion from a net outflow. from RM4.0 billion in the previous quarter.

Merchandise exports rose 15.8 percent to RM303.7 billion, and imports jumped 21.0 percent to RM242.5 billion. Higher import growth reduced the trade surplus to R 61.3 billion, down 1.1 percent from the third quarter of last year.

He said that in the meantime, Malaysia’s trade has maintained its positive momentum by posting a double-digit increase of 18.1% year-on-year, driven by the recovery in domestic economic activity and continued external demand. .

“Merchandise exports rose 15.8% to a record 303.7 billion ringgit and imports jumped 21.0% to 242.5 billion ringgit.

“The higher growth of imports reduced the trade surplus to 61.3 billion ringgit, 1.1% lower than in the third quarter of last year,” he said.

In terms of the labor market, Mohd Uzir said the number of employed people increased 1.2 percent (15.27 million) from the same period last year to 15.1 million.

“As the economy reopened during the quarter, the labor market continued to improve and regain momentum.

“This dynamic and continuous economic activity will accelerate the recovery of businesses and, therefore, increase the demand for labor, leading to the creation of more employment opportunities,” he said.