KL warns of export slowdown after Q2 growth of 4.4% misses estimates

Malaysia's growth missed official estimates in the second quarter, though the central bank said the economy is strong enough to weather an expected export slowdown due to US tariffs.

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KUALA LUMPUR -

Gross domestic product rose 4.4 per cent in the April to June period from a year earlier, slower than the 4.5 per cent advance estimate and the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey, but matching the pace of the first quarter. The economy expanded 2.1 per cent from the previous three months, Malaysia's central bank and statistics department said on Aug 15.

Malaysia is bracing itself for trade turmoil from US President Donald Trump's roll-out of global tariffs, with the central bank in July lowering its 2025 growth forecast range to 4 per cent to 4.8 per cent, from an earlier projection of a 4.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent expansion.

Malaysia's Finance Ministry has separately said the economy will grow at a moderate pace in 2026 amid subdued external demand.

"Let me emphasise that our economy remains on a strong footing," Bank Negara Malaysia governor Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said at a briefing, noting a recent interest rate cut will provide "additional lift".