KUALA LUMPUR- Malaysia’s economy is estimated to have grown 3.9 percent in the first quarter of 2024 from a year earlier, official advance figures showed on Friday, driven by growth in the services sector.
The advance estimates released by the Statistics Department compared with annual growth of 3.0 percent in the final quarter of 2023, when subdued exports weighed on growth.
Malaysia’s chief statistician Mohd UzirMahidin said all main sectors experienced positive growth in the first quarter of 2024, led by a 4.4 percent year-on-year increase in the services sector.
“(This was) supported by the wholesale and retail trade, transport and storage, and business services sub-sectors,” he said in a statement on Friday.
The manufacturing sector rebounded to 1.9 percent growth in the first quarter of this year from a 0.3 percent contraction in the final quarter of 2023, while the agriculture sector rose 1.3 percent year-on-year in the same period, driven by oil palm and livestock production, Mohd Uzir said.
Malaysia’s exports fell 0.8 percent in March from a year earlier, having also decreased by the same amount in February, separate data from the trade ministry showed on Friday.
The central bank last month forecast a 5 percent rise in exports in 2024, recovering from an 8 percent contraction last year.
