Malaysia's exports declined at a faster-than-expected pace in September, figures from the Department of Statistics showed Friday.
Exports fell 3.0 percent year-over-year in September, faster than the 2.0 percent drop expected by economists.
Exports of palm oil and palm-based products dipped 4.1 percent on year and those of timber and timber-based products slid by 8.0 percent.
Shipments of electrical and electronic products, which accounted for 38.5 percent of total exports, surged 18.8 percent in September from a year ago.
Imports edged down 0.1 percent annually in September, well below the expected decline of 1.6 percent.
On a monthly basis, both exports and imports grew by 0.7 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively in September.
The visible trade surplus of the country was shrank to MYR 7.6 billion in September from MYR 9.7 billion in the corresponding month last year. The expected surplus for the month was MYR 8.9 billion.
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