Higher exports of commodities spur January trade figure
KUALA LUMPUR: The exports of commodity-related products pushed the country's exports figure in January to reach doubledigit growth levels.
The research arm of Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd (HLIB Research) in a report yesterday said exports of commodity-related products charted strong growth of 35 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in January 2017.
The stronger exports in January compared with 22.7 per cent in December 2016 was due to continued recovery in commodity prices and export volume.
HLIB Research observed that the crude petroleum prices grew by 43 per cent y-o-y in January, the second increase after more than two years of decline.
At the same time, the research firm observed that the refined petroleum product prices recorded higher growth of 23 per cent y-o-y.
Having said that, export volumes of crude petroleum, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas (LNG) continued to expand in January.
The export growth in January has benefited from the ongoing recovery in commodity exports and continued expansion of manufactured exports.
Additionally, HLIB Research said manufactured exports registered a slightly faster annual pace of growth of 7.7 per cent y-o-y as compared to a growth of 7.2 per cent y-o-y in December 2016.
The faster growth was due to higher growth in the electrical and electronics segment and the rebound in metal exports whcih offset the decline in export for machinery and chemical products.
Likewise, the research firm noted the intermediate imports grew further by 10.4 per cent y-o-y which suggested continued expansion in manufactured export growth in the near-term.
On another note, HLIB Research said Malaysia's exports to all major countries expanded at a faster pace on an annual basis.
The research firm pointed out that exports to major trading countries for instance China, Japan, European Union and Association of Southeast Asia Nations (Asean) recorded double-digit growth.
Moreover, it noted exports to the US picked up but remained modest with a growth of 5.6 per cent y-o-y in January.
As a whole, the research firm noted Malaysia's gross exports expanded by 13.6 per cent y-o-y in January which was higher than the 10.7 per cent y-o-y growth in December 2016.
Going forward, HLIB Research opined that the country's exports will continue to remain resilient in the near term supported by exports of manufactured goods.