Malaysia's September exports rose 14.8 percent from a year earlier, slowing in pace for the second month in a row, despite strong demand for manufactured goods in China and Europe. Export growth was below the 18 percent rise forecast by a Reuters poll, and sharply down from 21.5 percent in August and July's 30.9 percent. Malaysia has seen double-digit growth in exports over the past nine months, peaking at 32.5 percent in May.
Shipments of manufactured goods, which accounted for more than four-fifths of Malaysia's total exports, were up 17.1 percent from a year earlier in September, data from the International Trade and Industry Ministry showed. Most of the manufactured goods were electrical and electronic products. Shipments of agricultural goods, however, declined 1.8 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.
September's imports grew 15.2 percent from a year earlier to 69.7 billion ringgit, down from the 22.6 percent growth posted in August. The trade surplus in September narrowed to 8.6 billion ringgit ($2.03 billion) from August's 9.9 billion ringgit.