Posted on 07 May 2010
Economist: Q1 GDP seen at over 9% (Malaysia)
RAM group chief economist Dr Yeah Kim Leng said Malaysia's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first quarter and the second quarter of this year was forecast to be over 9%.
"We saw a strong rebound in exports for this quarter, especially in May, fueled equally by a strong demand in domestic consumption," he said after RAM's AGM yesterday.
In the May issue of its monthly Economic Monitor, RAM said the pick-up in domestic consumption was shown in the continued uptrend in consumer loans and passenger car sales.
Malaysia's gross exports rose 30.7% and imports 35.1% in the first quarter, with March export volume reverting to pre-crisis level, Yeah said. On the impact of Greece's debt crisis on global bond market, he said the impact would likely be contained within the country and Europe.
"The United States, which is the largest economy, is on the recovery and China and India's economies are strong so we don't see global bond issuance being significantly affected, including in Malaysia," he said.
