Malaysia Imports Rise More than Expected

Imports to Malaysia increased 8.2% year-on-year to MYR 114.24 billion in February 2026, exceeding market expectations of a 5.4% growth and following a downwardly revised 4.8% rise in January. The three main import categories by end use, which together accounted for 73.8% of total imports, all recorded positive growth: intermediate goods (0.8%), capital goods (15.4%), and consumption goods (1.5%). By sector, manufacturing imports climbed 15.1%, primarily driven by a 36.3% surge in electrical and electronic products. In contrast, imports of agricultural products fell 26.0%, and mining products declined 37.2%. Among key trading partners, China remained the largest source of Malaysian imports (27.3%), followed by Taiwan (36.4%), the EU (9.0%), South Korea (86.8%), Japan (6.8%), Thailand (1.8%), and Vietnam (47.2%). Imports from Singapore (-5.6%), the US (-18.0%), and Indonesia (-10.5%) dropped.

Malaysia’s imports rose 5.3% yoy to MYR 125.50 billion in January 2026, slowing from a downwardly revised 9.5% growth in the prior month and missing market forecasts of 9.9%. It was the mildest gain since a drop last August, due to more subdued domestic demand at the start of the year. Purchases grew for consumption goods (16.7%) but fell for capital goods (-20.7%), intermediate goods (-5.1%), and dual-use goods (-49.4%). By sector, manufacturing imports increased 5.4%, led by E&E products (6.9%) and machinery, equipment (15.2%). Mining imports expanded 11.4%, boosted by metalliferous ores and metal scrap (94.1%). In contrast, agricultural imports slipped 12.8%, weighed by palm oil (-31.1%) and natural rubber (-19.0%). By destination, imports gained from China (17.6%), Japan (6.3%), the EU (11.9%), ASEAN (12.0%), Vietnam (24.1%), and India (10.4%), but shrank from Taiwan (-13.6%) and the U.S. (-24.0%). In 2025, total imports declined 3.6% from a year earlier to MYR 1.45 trillion.

Malaysia’s imports grew 12.0% year-on-year to MYR 133.7 billion in December 2025, easing from a 15.8% surge in the previous month but topping market estimates of an 8.5% increase, reflecting solid domestic demand at year-end. The rise was boosted by higher imports of consumption goods (27.6%), intermediate goods (3.6%), and dual-use goods (60.1%). Conversely, purchases of capital goods fell by 11.8%. By sector, manufacturing imports climbed 14.8%, led by E&E products (20.8%) and machinery, equipment (9.1%). Meanwhile, mining imports fell 10.8%, mainly due to a lower in crude petroleum (-45.2%). At the same time, agricultural imports also dropped (-7.1%), weighed by palm oil (-25.4%) and natural rubber (-37.1%). By destination, imports advanced from China (29.0%), Taiwan (10.7%), Japan (25.6%), and South Korea (51.2%), but declined from Singapore (-7.0%) and the US (-10.7%). For the full year of 2025, total imports fell 3.6% to MYR 1.32 trillion.