Trade Performance 2023
Trade Performance : December 2023 and January - December 2023
In 2023, global trade continued to expand at a slower pace, weighed down by several factors including lower commodity prices, geopolitical uncertainties, high inflation rate and downcycle in the semiconductor sector. Weak commodity prices continued to affect trade performance, notably for crude palm oil, crude petroleum and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Geopolitical uncertainties such as the United States (US)-China, Russia-Ukraine and Middle East conflicts also took a toll on the global economy and dampened demand for Malaysian products while high global inflation eroded consumer purchasing power in importing countries.
Despite the challenging global economic landscape, Malaysia’s trade last year exceeded RM2 trillion mark for three consecutive years and sustained its surplus trend for 26 successive years since 1998. Exports surpassed RM1 trillion for the third year in a row and achieved 82.4% of the target set for 2025 under the Mid-Term Review of the Twelfth Malaysia Plan (12MP). Meanwhile, imports posted another milestone by crossing RM1 trillion mark for the second time. The nation’s trade performance also realised the forecast published in the Economic Outlook 2024 by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) with trade, exports and imports achieving 100.1%, 99.7% and 100.5% of the projection, respectively.
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Trade Performance : December 2023 and January - December 2023
Trade Performance : December 2023 and January - December 2023 (Infographic)
Bahasa Melayu
Prestasi Perdagangan : Disember 2023 dan Januari - Disember 2023
Prestasi Perdagangan : Disember 2023 dan Januari - Disember 2023 (Infografik)
Trade Performance : November 2023 and January - November 2023
Malaysia Maintained Trade Surplus for the 43rd Consecutive Month
In November 2023, Malaysia’s trade decreased at a moderate rate of 2.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM231.79 billion. Exports reached RM122.10 billion, a contraction of 5.9% y-o-y while imports grew by 1.7% to RM109.69 billion. Trade surplus was valued at RM12.41 billion, making it the 43rd consecutive month of trade surplus since May 2020. Malaysia's performance was in tandem with its key trading partners notably Taiwan, ROC and Indonesia which posted negative trade growth in November 2023 and a drop in global imports.
Compared to October 2023, trade, exports, imports and trade surplus fell by 3.1%, 3.2%, 3.1% and 3.8%, respectively.
For the period of January to November 2023, trade declined by 7.5% to RM2.413 trillion compared to the same period last year. Exports decreased by 7.8% to RM1.308 trillion, imports was lower by 7.1% to RM1.105 trillion and trade surplus edged down by 11.3% to RM202.49 billion, respectively.
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Trade Performance : November 2023 and January - November 2023
Trade Performance : November 2023 and January - November 2023 (Infographic)
Bahasa Melayu
Prestasi Perdagangan : November 2023 dan Januari - November 2023
Prestasi Perdagangan : November 2023 dan Januari - November 2023 (Infografik)
Trade Performance : September 2023 and January - September 2023
Exports Breached RM1 trillion Mark in the First Nine Months
As compared to August 2023, Malaysia’s exports in September 2023 increased by 8.2% to RM124.47 billion. Imports expanded by 2.1% to RM99.95 billion, resulting in a total trade of RM224.43 billion which rose by 5.4%. Trade surplus registered a double-digit growth of 42.7% to RM24.52 billion, making it the 41 consecutive month of trade surplus since May 2020.
Compared to September 2022, exports was lower by 13.7% and imports edged down by 11.1% amid slower global demand, uncertainties in commodity prices and high base effect last year. Subsequently, total trade was lower by 12.6%. The performance was similar to Malaysia’s major trading partners notably the Republic of Korea (ROK), China, Taiwan and Indonesia which recorded negative trade growth for September 2023 and drop in their global imports. Trade surplus in September 2023 contracted by 23%, year-on-year (y-o-y).
Trade for the third quarter (Q3) of 2023 increased by 1.6% to RM653.57 billion compared to second quarter (Q2) of 2023. Exports grew by 2.2% to RM356.31 billion, imports expanded by 0.8% to RM297.26 billion and trade surplus rose by 9.6% to RM59.06 billion, respectively.
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Trade Performance : September 2023 and January - September 2023
Trade Performance : September 2023 and January - September 2023 (Infographic)
Bahasa Melayu
Prestasi Perdagangan : September 2023 dan Januari - September 2023
Prestasi Perdagangan : September 2023 dan Januari - September 2023 (Infografik)
Trade Performance : October 2023 and January - October 2023
Trade Exceeded the RM2 trillion Mark in the First Ten Months
On a month-on-month (m-o-m) basis, Malaysia’s trade in October 2023 expanded by 6.8% to RM239.52 billion. Exports increased by 1.5% to RM126.19 billion and imports registered a double-digit growth of 13.4% to RM113.33 billion. Trade surplus reached RM12.87 billion, marking the 42nd consecutive month of trade surplus since May 2020.
Malaysia’s trade declined at a softer pace of 2.4% year-on-year (y-o-y), compared with the double-digit decrease reported in the previous month. Exports eased by 4.4% and imports reduced marginally by 0.2%. Malaysia's performance was similar with its key trading partners notably China, Taiwan RoC and Indonesia which experienced negative trade growth in October 2023 and a reduction in global imports.
For the period of January to October 2023, trade surpassed the RM2 trillion mark, reaching RM2.181 trillion. Exports amounted to RM1.186 trillion, while imports were valued at RM995.55 billion. Trade, exports and imports each posted an 8% decrease compared to the corresponding period last year. Trade surplus was lower by 7.9%, amounting to RM190.04 billion.
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Trade Performance : October 2023 and January - October 2023
Trade Performance : October 2023 and January - October 2023 (Infographic)
Bahasa Melayu
Prestasi Perdagangan : Oktober 2023 dan Januari - Oktober 2023
Prestasi Perdagangan : Oktober 2023 dan Januari - Oktober 2023 (Infografik)
Trade Performance : August 2023 and January - August 2023
40th Consecutive Month of Trade Surplus
Malaysia registered the 40th consecutive month of trade surplus in August 2023, registering a year-on-year (y-o-y) growth of 0.1% to RM17.31 billion. Total trade decreased by 19.8% to RM213.01 billion amid slower global demand and lower commodity prices. Exports was lower by 18.6% to RM115.16 billion and imports edged down by 21.2% to RM97.85 billion. The performance was similar to Malaysia’s key trading partners notably the Republic of Korea (ROK), China, Taiwan and Indonesia which recorded negative trade growth for August 2023 and drop in their global imports.
Compared to July 2023, trade, exports, imports and trade surplus contracted by 1.5%, 1.4%, 1.6% and 0.3%, respectively.
For the period of January to August 2023, trade reduced by 8.1% to RM1.718 trillion compared to the same period of last year. Exports shrank by 7.6% to RM935.22 billion, imports slipped by 8.6% to RM782.29 billion and trade surplus fell by 2% to RM152.92 billion, respectively.
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Trade Performance : August 2023 and January - August 2023
Trade Performance : August 2023 and January - August 2023 (Infographic)
Bahasa Melayu
Prestasi Perdagangan : Ogos 2023 dan Januari - Ogos 2023
Prestasi Perdagangan : Ogos 2023 dan Januari - Ogos 2023 (Infografik)
