E&E shipments boost April exports to RM84.2b
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s exports grew 14 per cent year-onyear (y-o-y) to RM84.24 billion in April from RM73.79 billion a year ago, according to the International Trade and Industry Ministry.
This was the second highest monthly export value after the RM84.47 billion recorded in March, it said.
The growth was supported mainly by higher exports to Hong Kong, Asean, China, the European Union, Taiwan, Bangladesh and South Korea.
Imports rose 9.1 per cent to RM71.17 billion from RM65.21 billion in April last year while total trade rebounded 11.7 per cent to RM155.42 billion y-o-y, compared with a decline of 3.5 per cent in March.
Trade surplus was at RM13.07 billion, the 246th consecutive month of surplus since November 1997.
On a month-on-month basis, the ministry’s data revealed that imports and total trade grew two and 0.8 per cent, while exports and trade surplus contracted 0.3 and 11 per cent, respectively.
Total trade for the first four months this year rose 4.9 per cent to RM597.3 billion from RM569.7 billion recorded in the same period last year.
Exports increased 7.8 per cent to RM321.87 billion while imports were higher by 1.6 per cent to RM275.43 billion from RM271.03 billion a year ago. This led to a 68.7 per cent surge in trade surplus to RM46.44 billion.
The ministry said the April export performance was largely fuelled by electrical and electronic (E&E) products worth RM31.84 billion, which constituted 37.8 per cent of total exports.
The E&E sector grew 21.2 per cent in April this year compared with RM26.2 billion in the same month last year. Petroleum products grew 16.7 per cent to RM6.39 billion — about 7.6 per cent of total exports.
Manufactures of metal rose 42.8 per cent to RM4.71 billion, making up about 5.6 per cent of total exports.
Chemicals and chemical products grew 17.8 per cent to RM4.58 billion.
However, palm oil and palm oilbased agriculture products decreased 0.8 per cent to RM4.19 billion.
Meanwhile, exports of manufactured goods increased 10.4 per cent to RM266.94 billion in the first four months of this year, led by higher exports of E&E products, manufactures of metal, chemicals and chemical products, transport equipment as well as optical and scientific equipment.
Exports of mining goods rose 0.9 per cent to RM27.93 billion in the period, supported mainly by higher crude petroleum shipments.
Agriculture goods exports contracted 8.7 per cent to RM23.83 billion, due to lower exports of palm oil and palm oil-based agriculture products as well as natural rubber.