KUALA LUMPUR (April 18): Malaysia’s economic growth may have decelerated in the first quarter of 2025 as manufacturing production and services activities cushioned a sharper contraction in mining output, official flash estimates showed.

Gross domestic product (GDP) likely rose 4.4% in the January-March quarter from a year earlier, the Department of Statistics Malaysia said on Friday. That compares with the median 4.8% rise predicted in a Bloomberg survey and the fourth quarter’s 5.0% year-on-year growth.

“Malaysia’s GDP growth held firm amid persistent global headwinds, underpinned by resilient domestic fundamentals,” said chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin.

Seasonal events such as festive celebrations and school reopening helped amid a strong labour market while improved global demand drove Malaysia’s export-oriented factories, he noted.

“Collectively, these domestic and external components helped buffer the economy against global challenges, supporting overall growth during the quarter,” Mohd Uzir added.

The services sector, which accounts for more than half of the economic output, grew 5.2% versus 5.5% in the preceding three months, led by the wholesale and retail trade, transportation and storage, and information and communication sub-sectors.

The manufacturing sector also registered a slower year-on-year growth at 4.2% compared with 4.4% in the previous quarter, supported by strong output in the electrical, electronic and optical products as well as the vegetable and animal oils and fats and food processing.

The construction sector growth moderated to 14.5% from 20.7% in the fourth quarter of 2024 thanks to specialised construction activities and residential buildings while the agriculture sector turned around with 0.7% growth in the first quarter from a 0.5% contraction previously.

Mining and quarrying, however, shrank 4.9%, steeper than the 0.9% decline previously with broadly lower output.

The comprehensive second analysis for first-quarter GDP data will be released on May 16.