PETALING JAYA: Business sentiment has weakened for the third consecutive quarter with more than two-thirds of respondents in a survey expecting gross revenue to drop or stagnate in the third quarter of the year (3Q25).
The Statistics Department’s business tendency survey revealed that 3Q25 condition indicator stood at merely 0.1%, down from previous quarter’s 2%.
For perspective, the confidence indicator was higher at 4.8% in 4Q24.
The cautious sectors were construction as well as wholesale and retail trade.
The construction sector recorded a confidence indicator of negative 2% in 3Q25, compared with a positive 4.6% in the preceding quarter.
The wholesale and retail trade sector also saw a negative confidence indicator of minus 7.3%, lower than negative 6.7% in 2Q25, reflecting persisting caution in the sector.
The retail trade subsector’s confidence indicator rebounded to a positive trajectory, recording 1.9% in 3Q25.
The services sector remained optimistic in 3Q25 with a confidence indicator of 1.5%, even though this was a sharp reduction from 6.9% in the previous second quarter.
The industry sector, on the other hand, continued to show steady optimism with a slight increase in confidence to 2.2% from 1.9% in 2Q25.
State-wise, business confidence indicators in 3Q25 highlighted encouraging resilience, with several states showing notable improvements.
