Malaysian exports climb more than market expectations in November

Exports in Malaysia climbed during the month of November, higher than what markets had initially anticipated.

Exports rose 7.8 percent year-over-year in November, well above the 2.5 percent increase expected by economists, data released by the Department of Statistics showed Friday.

Shipments of electrical and electronic products, which accounted for 35.9 percent of total exports, climbed 13.2 percent annually in November. Exports of palm oil and palm based-products surged 24.3 percent.

Imports expanded 11.2 percent in November from a year ago, much faster than the expected rise of 2.9 percent. The growth in imports was contributed by intermediate goods, capital goods and consumption goods. On a monthly basis, both exports and imports grew by 5.2 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively in November.

As imports grew faster than exports, the visible trade surplus of the country shrank to MYR9.0 billion in November from MYR10.2 billion in the corresponding month last year. It was forecast to rise to MYR10.25 billion.

Meanwhile, exports to the United States rose 9.9 percent from a year earlier in November, while those to Europe gained 12.3 percent. Exports to China rose 12 percent due to higher demand for electrical, electronic and palm-based goods.