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Malaysia's Leading Index, Coincident Index Rise in February

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Malaysia's Leading Index rose 0.5% annually in February to 113.1 points, from 112.5 points a year earlier, showing moderate economic growth, the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said Friday.

The index measures future economic direction.

The rise was driven by an 18.7% jump in real imports of other basic precious and non-ferrous metals, and an 8.4% growth in real money supply (M1), though five of seven components declined, including housing approvals.

Monthly, the index slid 0.3% due to declines in components such as real imports of semiconductors and the number of new companies registered.

Meanwhile, the Coincident Index, which reflects current economic conditions, rose 1.6% year on year to 129.4 points, although it fell 1.4% month on month.

The annual increase was supported by gains in most components, while the monthly decline was weighed by weaker EPF contributions and softer capacity utilization in manufacturing, the data showed.

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