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KUALA LUMPUR: The directed conditional motion control order (CMCO) is considered the best approach to mitigate the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and regain the momentum of the economic recovery, according to the statistics department.
Statistical chief Mohd Uzir Mahidin said that this happened despite difficult economic conditions looming with the implementation of the CMCO in Sabah, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya following the third wave of the Covid-19 outbreak in the country.
“These states contributed 46.6% of the economy in 2019. Therefore, any consequence on industrial activities within these areas will have an impact on the overall economic performance of the country,” he said today in a statement along with the Publication of the latest Malaysia Economic Report. Statistical review by the department.
According to Uzir, the report aims to provide users in the public and private sectors with data and insights on the latest economic scenario.
The report includes two articles entitled “Preliminary assessment of the underemployment situation in Malaysia” and “Overview of the performance of the creative industry in Malaysia”.
He said that the Covid-19 pandemic had influenced business operations, which in turn affected the overall employment situation in Malaysia.
“This was reflected in higher unemployment rates during the first half of 2020, with the highest recorded in May 2020 at 5.3%.
“Subsequently, as more economic sectors continued to resume operations, the unemployment rate fell to 4.7% in July and the rate remained (at 4.7%) for August 2020,” he said, adding that the department was looking at the measurement of indicators of underemployment. to provide additional information on the labor market.
Uzir said that Malaysia posted manufacturing sales of RM118.5 billion in August compared to RM119.2 billion in July.
“The performance of merchandise trade for both exports and imports decreased 14.5% and 2.2% respectively since July,” he said.
The value of wholesale and retail trade sales continued to grow 2.5% in August compared to the previous month, mainly driven by growth in wholesale trade.
“This sector is gradually recovering year over year with increasingly narrow negative growth that is expected to improve further in September.
“Based on the recent leading index, Malaysia is expected to continue the recovery phase by recording 108.5 points in August with an annual growth rate of 7.6%,” he added.
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