Economy shrinks 17.1% in 2Q, weakest since 1998

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's economy shrank 17.1% in the second quarter ended June 30 as it was seriously impacted by the movement control orders, especially in April, which was a much deeper contraction compared with a Bloomberg survey of 10.9%.

In a statement issued on Friday, the Statistics Department said the 2Q performance was the lowest recorded since the fourth quarter of 1998 (-11.2%) during the height of the Asian Financial Crisis.