Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) is forecasted to grow between 4.2 percent and 4.3 percent this year, propelled by healthy local demand and the construction of major infrastructure, reported Bernama.
The country’s robust labour market and stable salary growth would continue to drive domestic demand, according to Rafael Munoz Monero, World Bank Senior Economist for Malaysia.
“The government has also been pushing for infrastructural projects, which counter-balance the declining private investments,” he said during a talk entitled “2017 Economic Forecast, Sector Outlook and Credit Trends” held at Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday (14 February).
Malaysia is also benefiting from the rising prices of commodities, like palm oil. “We are seeing a slight improvement in the external front, mostly coming from the increasing commodity prices,” noted Monero.
Meanwhile, Standard and Poor’s Asia-Pacific Economist Vincent Conti revealed that US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) had negatively impacted the large trade deal, which includes Malaysia, and this could lead to a decline in worldwide trade.
“The slowing down in global trade will definitely be terrible news for trade within the region,” he said.
“And now we have to face the risk of tariffs. Trump’s campaign had labelled China as a currency manipulator, which immediately allows them to impose 45 percent tariffs on its imports.”
It’s still uncertain whether the US will really introduce tariffs on China, but if it does, other countries in the ASEAN region will be affected, according to CIMB Group Chief Economist Dr Arup Raha.
“As you know, supply chains run rampant across Asia, and tariffs on China could mean tariffs for everyone in the region,” he added.
Radin Ghazali, Content Writer at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories email radin@propertyguru.com.my
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