KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 29 (Sin Chew Daily) — Different phases of Movement Control Order (MCO) implemented by the government of Malaysia have impacted the economy, said statistics department chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin.

Acknowledging that COVID-19 pandemic was a challenge in 2020, Mohd Uzir said the pandemic had posed major challenges to the global economy.

Almost all countries in the world experienced economic slowdown last year, and the situation will likely be worse this year, he said in a statement.

"As MCO 2.0 is still ongoing until Feb 4, more stringent standard operating procedures for business operations and ban on interstate travels may have undesirable effects on the economy," he said.

Mohd Uzir opined that it was crucial to monitor the challenges brought by COVID-19 through economic indicators to reduce its adverse impact.

Citing an example, he said some countries, including China, recorded a rapid economic growth of 6.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020 with improvement in exports and manufacturing sector.

For Malaysia, Mohd Uzir said Malaysian exports showed signs of recovery last November, marking the third consecutive month of year-on-year growth.

"Exports grew 4.3 per cent year-on-year in November mainly due to increasing orders for export of goods to major trading partners such as the United States, Singapore, China, Hong Kong and the European Union.

Imports lowered by a drastic magnitude of negative 9.0 per cent, he said. 

The Industrial Production Index (IPI) recorded a drop of 2.2 per cent in November compared to the same month a year earlier.

The manufacturing sector which made up the largest component in IPI, posted an increase of 2.0 per cent, buoyed by growth in both exports and domestic output, he said.

In contrast, turnover for wholesale and retail trade dipped by 1.2 per cent in November compared to the same period last year due to weaker performance of retail trade which contracted 2.3 per cent.

In November 2020, the Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures the average price change imposed by local producers on their output, dipped at a smaller rate of 3.0 per cent year-on-year due to decrease in mining, electricity and gas supply.

He said a similar trend was detected in Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the same month, with the CPI declining 1.7 per cent year-on-year.