Malaysian companies remain optimistic about their expectations for the second quarter, but at a slower rate, with a confidence indicator of 3.5 percent, down from 7.6 percent in the first quarter, according to government statistics released Thursday.
Despite the reopening of Malaysia’s international borders, which is expected to boost economic activity, Malaysian businesses remain cautious about their prospects due to inflationary pressures, supply chain and labour shortages, according to a statement from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
Except for the construction industry, all industries expect stronger business conditions in the second quarter, according to the DOSM.
The wholesale and retail trade sector is the most confident about its business prospects, with the confidence index increasing for the third quarter in a row, reaching 15.5 percent in the second quarter from 4 percent the previous quarter.
Meanwhile, the services sector expects the business condition to improve moderately in the second quarter, with a confidence index of 5.6 percent compared to 11.1 percent in the first quarter.
Concurrently, the industry sector anticipates a 0.8 percent increase in company performance in the second quarter of 2022.
Agriculture and mining, in particular, are expecting adverse business circumstances in the reference quarter. On the other side, the construction sector’s confidence index improved in the second quarter, falling to negative 23.2 percent from minus 40.4 percent in the first.
