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KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 14): Malaysia’s current-account surplus jumped in the third quarter, driven by resilient goods exports and an improving services sector, official data released on Friday showed.
Surplus in the current account totalled RM12.2 billion in the third quarter, the Department of Statistics Malaysia said in a statement. The services account posted a surplus for the first time in 14 years, buoyed by robust growth in the tourism receipts from higher international arrivals.
Higher goods account surplus also helped, reflecting improved manufacturing and mining-related exports, amid lower capital and intermediate imports, said chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin.
Current-account surplus, as a proportion of economic output, was 2.4% in the third quarter. The surplus means that the country is earning more foreign exchange from goods and services exported than it is spending on imports.
The surplus had shrunk to its smallest in more than two decades in the second quarter at just RM0.3 billion. The latest surplus is also markedly larger than the RM1.8 billion recorded in the third quarter of 2024.
The secondary income accounts — transfers and payments between residents and non-residents — also improved with smaller deficit on the back of higher remittances and income inflows.
The financial account, meanwhile, recorded a much larger net outflow of RM11.2 billion compared to RM2.2 billion in the second quarter due to portfolio investment reflecting bonds redemptions by non-residents upon maturity and increased investment in foreign securities by Malaysian investors.
Foreign direct investment amounted to RM8.5 billion during the quarter versus RM1.6 billion in the preceding quarter. Most of the investments were channelled into the services sector, predominantly into information and communication technology and financial services subsectors.
“The promotions of a lot of trade agreements with the US have provided a lot of certainty for Malaysia,” said Bank Negara Malaysia deputy governor Datuk Marzunisham Omar at a news conference on Friday.