-- Malaysia's total trade in goods rose 9.3% annually to 273 billion ringgit in March, driven by growth in both exports and imports, according to data released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia on Monday.
Exports increased 8.3% year on year to 148.8 billion ringgit, while imports rose 10.4% to 124.2 billion ringgit.
As a result, the trade surplus stood at 24.6 billion ringgit, slightly lower by 215.5 million ringgit compared with a year earlier.
Monthly, total trade, exports, imports and trade balance all recorded increases of 11.3%, 13.6%, 8.7% and 47%, respectively, the data showed.