KUALA LUMPUR, April 26 (NNN-Bernama) — Malaysia’s economic outlook is expected to continue recovering, as suggested by the country’s Leading Index (LI) which continued to indicate that the country’s near-term economic prospect remains upbeat, said MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Bhd.
The LI is a predictive tool used to anticipate economic upturns and downturns in an average of four to six months ahead.
“Continuous rollout of stimulus packages, including the latest Strategic Programme to Empower People and the Economy (PEMERKASA), Kita Prihatin, Malaysian Economic and Rakyat’s Protection Assistance Package (PERMAI), as well as the low-interest rate environment will continue to assist economic recovery.
“However, the slow vaccination rollouts and the potential new wave of infections remain as downside risks,” the research firm said in a note Monday.
Malaysia’s LI increased by 8.5 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in February 2021 — the highest LI reading since September 2020 — buoyed by the consistent rise in Bursa Malaysia Industrial Index, particularly from the healthcare, transportation and logistics as well as the utilities indices.
MIDF Amanah said the LI recorded a similar trend in the previous month, growing by 1.1 per cent month-on-month, driven by the better performance in real imports of other basic precious and other non-ferrous metals and the number of new companies registered.
Additionally, the faster growth in real money supply had also contributed positively towards the rise in LI during the month.
“The Coincident Index also showed improvements, falling at a softer rate of -2.0 per cent y-o-y in February 2021 following the sharp growth in the volume index of retail trade.
“The slower decline indicates that the current economic condition had improved in February 2021, as most businesses were allowed to continue operating under strict restrictions,” it added.
— NNN-BERNAMA
