CHAN BOON KAI/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's positive trade performance in April 2025 was underpinned by a double-digit expansion in exports, led by a rebound in shipments to Asean and China, as well as a surge in trade with the US.
According to the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (Miti), the country's exports grew 16.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM133.56bil in April.
"The growth in exports was predominantly driven by robust demand for manufactured goods, particularly electrical and electronic (E&E) products, which increased by almost RM16bil.
"Another equally important sector was agriculture goods, especially palm oil and palm oil-based agriculture products which also played a significant role in supporting the overall expansion in exports," it said in its latest monthly trade report.
Meanwhile, an increase in imports for the month saw the value of inbound shipments rising 20% to RM128.37bil.
In April, Malaysia's overall trade value was 18.2% higher y-o-y at RM261.94bil. A trade surplus of RM5.19bil was recorded, marking a 60th consecutive month of trade surplus since May 2020.
The total trade value from January to April 2025 came to RM977.61bil, a 7.2% increase from the same period in 2024. Exports over the same period rose 7.3% y-o-y to RM511.92bil while imports gained 7% y-o-y to RM465.69bil.
The trade surplus jumped 10.4% y-o-y to RM46.23bil during the period.
By destination, outbound shipments to the US surged 45.6% to RM19.22bil on the back of strong exports of electrical and electronics (E&E) products, processed food and machinery, equipment and parts.
Exports to China jumped 13.9% y-o-y to RM44.17bil, while trade with Asean partners rebounded 11.2% to RM67.63bil.
There was also a record shipment value of RM7.22bil to Taiwan, representing a 44.7% increase over April 2024, and a strong 12.3% y-o-y rebound in overall exports to Free Trade Agreement (FTA) partners, amounting to RM88.34bil.
According to Miti, the main driver of April's export growth was E&E products, up 35.4% to RM60.23bil.
Exports of machinery, equipment and parts leapt 31% higher to RM6.5bil in April while outbound shipments of palm oil and palm oil-based agriculture products expanded 1.8% to RM6.31bil.
There was a 9.3% decline in the export of petroleum products to RM8.5bil, as well as 11.3% drop in the value of shipments of chemicals and chemical products to RM5.23bil.
On imports, there was a 114.1% surge in capital goods to RM23.56bil as a result of higher shipments of non-transport capital goods.
The import value of intermediate goods dropped 1.7% to RM58.2bil due to lower imports of primary fuel and lubricants while the value of consumption goods edged 0.7% lower to RM9.68bil due to lower imports of processed food and beverages, mainly for household consumption.
