2026.04.2404:17:51UTC+00Malaysia Leading Economic Index Drops 0.3% in February

Malaysia's leading economic index slipped 0.3% month-on-month in February 2026, after an upwardly revised 0.7% decline in January. This marked the second consecutive monthly decrease, driven mainly by weaker real imports of semiconductors (-0.6% vs -0.02% previously), a drop in the number of newly registered companies (-0.6% vs -0.04%), and a fall in the number of approved housing units (-0.4% vs 0.1%).

These declines were partly offset by gains in several sub-indices: real money supply, M1, rebounded (0.7% vs -0.4% in January), the Bursa Malaysia Industrial Index edged higher (0.2% vs -0.2%), and real imports of other basic precious and non-ferrous metals rose (0.5% vs -0.1%).

On a year-on-year basis, the leading index increased 0.5%, slightly below January’s 0.6%, which had been the highest reading in three months. Meanwhile, the coincident index, which tracks current economic conditions, fell 1.4% month-on-month in February, reversing a 0.9% gain in January.