Xifres de comerç exterior de Malàisia

Foreign Trade in Figures

Malaysia is well known for its openness to international trade, which represents roughly 131% of its GDP (World Bank, latest data available), making the country vulnerable to external demand. Malaysia mainly exports electrical & electronics products (38.2% of the total in 2022, up by 30.2% to MYR 593.49 billion, driven by robust demand for semiconductors due to the acceleration of global technology upcycle and business digitalisation). In the same year, exports of agricultural goods were valued at MYR 120.94 billion and comprised a 7.8% share of total exports; whereas mining goods had a share of 7.5%. Increases in exports were seen for all products except rubber products as well as crude fertilisers and crude minerals. The three primary import categories included: intermediate goods (54.4% share, driven by robust imports of primary fuel and lubricants), capital goods (9.3%), and consumption goods (8%, expanding by 24.1%, primarily due to increased imports of processed food and beverages for household consumption - data Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation).

China remained as the largest import source since 2011, followed by Singapore, Taiwan, the U.S. and Japan. These markets contributed 54.1% to Malaysia’s total imports. Meanwhile, imports from ASEAN accounted for 24.6%, while those from the EU had a share of 7% (data Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation). As per exports, Singapore (15%), China (13.6%), the United States (10.8%), Japan (6.3%), Hong Kong SAR, and China (6.2%) were the main destinations (Comtrade). The government supported the creation of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a multilateral free-trade agreement negotiated between Asia-Pacific and North American countries. The treaty, signed by Malaysia and eleven other nations in order to boost inter-regional trade, was renamed the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) after the withdrawal of the United States in January 2017. It was signed in March 2018 but the Malaysian government has not set any deadline for ratifying. In 2020, Malaysia has signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with 14 other Indo-Pacific countries. This free trade agreement is the largest trade deal in history, covering 30 per cent of the global economy. It includes the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and ASEAN’s free trade agreement partners (Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea). The RCEP covers goods, services, investment, economic and technical cooperation. It also creates new rules for electronic commerce, intellectual property, government procurement, competition, and small and medium-sized enterprises.

According to WTO data, exports of goods amounted to USD 352.4 billion and imports reached USD 294.3 billion in 2022. With regard to services, Malaysia exported USD 31.6 billion and imported USD 44.6 billion. The overall trade balance was estimated to be positive by 7.2% of GDP (World Bank). According to preliminary figures from the Ministry of Trade and Industry, from January to October 2023, Malaysia's overall trade exceeded the MYR 2 trillion milestone, totalling MYR 2.181 trillion. Exports constituted MYR 1.186 trillion, and imports were valued at MYR 995.55 billion. Trade, exports and imports each posted an 8% decrease compared to the corresponding period one year earlier, while trade surplus was lower by 7.9%, amounting to MYR 190.04 billion.