KL trade surplus widens as import growth slows

Kuala Lumpur

MALAYSIA posted a sluggish 2 per cent year-on-year rise in export growth in September, underlining the central bank's recent remarks about the uneven pace of growth in advanced economies.

Nevertheless, a compression in import growth (1.1 per cent from 7.6 per cent in August) caused the trade surplus to widen sharply to RM9.3 billion (S$3.6 billion) from RM3.9 billion in August.