KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 24): Malaysia’s leading index (LI) saw a 0.2 % decrease to 109.8 points in November 2023 as compared to 110.0 points in the same month of the previous year, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).

In a statement on Wednesday, chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said that looking at the smoothed long-term trend in November 2023, the LI remained below the 100.0-point trend, and Malaysia’s economy is foreseen to maintain its moderate growth supported by the resilient performance of domestic-oriented industries despite continuing to face the uncertainty of the international market.

The LI is a tool utilised for predicting economic trends four to six months ahead.

Mohd Uzir said the LI decline in November 2023 is due to the unfavourable performance in the number of housing units approved (-25.8%) and real imports of semiconductors (-18.3%).

However, he said the Bursa Malaysia Industrial Index grew 17.1% and has remained positive since May 2023.

The monthly performance of the LI rebounded by 0.5% as compared to -0.1 % in October 2023, driven by a significant increase in real imports of semiconductors (1.0 %).

As for the current economic position, the chief statistician said the Coincident Index (CI) recorded 123.7 points, an increase of 2.6% as compared to 120.3 points in the same month of the preceding year.

“This performance was contributed by all components, mainly the Real Contributions Value, Employees Provident Fund (13.7%).

“In contrast to the annual performance, the monthly CI shrank by a negative 0.3%, influenced by lacklustre performances in all components except for Real Salaries & Wages in Manufacturing (0.1%),” he added.