skyline at night in Malaysia

Malaysia Economy

Malaysia's economy in numbers:

Nominal GDP of USD 407 billion in 2022.

GDP per capita of USD 12,466 compared to the global average of USD 10,589.

Average real GDP growth of 4.3% over the last decade.

Share of the region's population
Share of the region's GDP

Economic structure:

In 2021, services accounted for 53% of overall GDP, manufacturing 23%, other industrial activity 14%, and agriculture 10%. Looking at GDP by expenditure, private consumption accounted for 58% of GDP in 2021, government consumption 13%, fixed investment 22%, and net exports 7%.

GDP by economic sector
GDP by type of expenditure

International trade:

In 2021, manufactured products made up 70% of total merchandise exports, mineral fuels 12%, food 11%, ores and metals 5% and agricultural raw materials 1%, with other categories accounting for 1% of the total. In the same period, manufactured products made up 67% of total merchandise imports, mineral fuels 13%, food 9%, ores and metals 6% and agricultural raw materials 2%, with other goods accounting for 3% of the total. Total exports were worth USD 352 billion in 2022, while total imports were USD 294 billion.

Key exports
Key imports
Key export partners
Key import partners

Economic growth:

The economy recorded average annual growth of 4.3% in the decade to 2022. To read more about GDP growth in Malaysia, go to our dedicated page.

Fiscal policy:

Malaysia's fiscal deficit averaged 4.2% of GDP in the decade to 2022. Find out more on our dedicated page.

Unemployment:

The unemployment rate averaged 3.5% in the decade to 2022. For more information on Malaysia's unemployment click here.

Inflation:

Inflation averaged 1.9% in the decade to 2022. Go to our Malaysia inflation page for extra insight.

Monetary Policy:

Malaysia's monetary policy rate ended 2022 at 2.75%, down from 3.00% a decade earlier. See our Malaysia monetary policy page for additional details.

Exchange Rate:

From end-2012 to end-2022 the ringgit weakened by 29.5% vs the U.S. dollar. For more info on the ringgit, click here.
After accelerating in Q3 on stronger rises in public and private spending, growth picked up further in Q4 year on year. That said, the result disappointed markets on the downside. The weaker-than-expected increase was due to slower growth in the services and construction sectors, near-stagnant manufacturing output and decreasing exports. However, a rebound in mining and quarrying activity and stronger agricultural production growth supported the uptick. In other news, Malaysia and Singapore agreed in early January to develop a special economic zone (SEZ) to boost cross-border links. The recently completed rail link between Johor and Singapore, planned passport-free travel measures and digitized processes for cargo clearance in the SEZ will boost trade and business activity in the medium term.
Projections out to 2033.

49 indicators covered including both annual and quarterly frequencies.

Consensus Forecasts based on a panel of 35 expert analysts.

Want to get insight on the economic outlook for Malaysia in the coming years? FocusEconomics collects projections out to 2033 on 49 economic indicators for Malaysia from a panel of 35 analysts at the leading national, regional and global forecast institutions. These projections are then validated by our in-house team of economists and data analysts, and averaged to provide one Consensus Forecast you can rely on for each indicator. This means you avoid the risk of relying on out of date, biased or outlier forecasts. Our Consensus Forecasts can be visualized in whichever way best suits your needs, including via interactive online dashboards , direct data delivery and executive-style reports which combine analysts' projections with timely written analysis from our in-house team of economists on the latest developments in the Malaysia economy. To download a sample report on the Malaysia's economy, click here . To get in touch with our team for more information, fill in the form at the bottom of this page .

Malaysia Economic Data

2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Population (million) 32.4 32.5 32.4 32.6 32.7
GDP (USD bn) 359 365 338 374 407
GDP per capita (USD) 11,079 11,227 10,405 11,472 12,466
GDP (MYR bn) 1,448 1,513 1,418 1,549 1,791
Economic Growth (Nominal GDP, ann. var. %) 5.5 4.5 -6.2 9.2 15.7
Economic Growth (GDP, ann. var. %) 4.8 4.4 -5.5 3.3 8.7
Domestic Demand (ann. var. %) 4.7 3.9 -4.8 3.8 9.3
Private Consumption (ann. var. %) 8.0 7.7 -3.9 1.9 11.2
Government Consumption (ann. var. %) 3.4 1.5 4.1 6.4 4.5
Fixed Investment (ann. var. %) 1.4 -2.1 -14.4 -0.8 6.8
Exports (G&S, ann. var. %) 1.9 -1.0 -8.6 18.5 14.5
Imports (G&S, ann. var. %) 1.5 -2.4 -7.9 21.2 15.9
Industrial Production (ann. var. %) 3.2 2.4 -4.1 7.4 6.9
Retail Sales (ann. var. %) 12.4 7.0 -2.0 3.5 22.7
Unemployment (% of active population, aop) 3.3 3.3 4.5 4.6 3.8
Fiscal Balance (% of GDP) -3.7 -3.4 -6.2 -6.4 -5.6
Public Debt (% of GDP) 51.2 52.4 62.0 63.3 60.3
Money (ann. var. of M2 %) 8.9 3.5 4.5 6.3 4.3
Inflation (CPI, ann. var. %, eop) 0.2 1.0 -1.4 3.2 3.8
Inflation (CPI, ann. var. %, aop) 1.0 0.7 -1.1 2.5 3.4
Inflation (PPI, ann. var. %, aop) -1.1 -1.4 -2.7 9.5 7.7
Overnight Policy Rate (%, eop) 3.25 3.00 1.75 1.75 2.75
3-Month KLIBOR (%, eop) 3.69 3.35 1.94 2.05 3.68
10-Year Bond Yield (%, eop) 4.08 3.35 2.69 3.58 4.10
Stock Market (ann. var. of FTSE BM KLCI %) -5.9 -6.0 2.4 -3.7 -4.6
Exchange Rate (MYR per USD, eop) 4.13 4.09 4.02 4.17 4.41
Exchange Rate (MYR per USD, aop) 4.04 4.14 4.20 4.14 4.40
Current Account Balance (USD bn) 8.0 12.8 14.1 14.5 12.5
Current Account Balance (% of GDP) 2.2 3.5 4.2 3.9 3.1
Merchandise Trade Balance (USD bn) 30.7 35.2 43.6 61.2 58.2
Merchandise Exports (USD bn) 248.7 240.2 234.1 299.4 352.2
Merchandise Imports (USD bn) 218.0 205.0 190.5 238.2 294.0
Merchandise Exports (ann. var. %) 14.4 -3.4 -2.5 27.9 17.6
Merchandise Imports (ann. var. %) 12.1 -6.0 -7.1 25.0 23.4
Foreign Direct Investment (USD bn) 7.6 7.8 3.2 12.2 16.9
International Reserves (USD bn) 101 104 108 117 115
International Reserves (months of imports) 5.6 6.1 6.8 5.9 4.7
External Debt (USD bn) 229 229 228 261 260
External Debt (% of GDP) 63.8 62.6 67.6 69.7 63.9

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