Malaysia's manufacturing industry expanded by 5.7 percent, driven by the manufacture of electrical, electronic, and optical goods, as well as petroleum, chemical, rubber, and plastic products, in addition to non-metallic mineral products, basic metals, and fabricated metal products.

The mining and quarrying industry saw a decline of 3.4 percent in this quarter compared to 2.7 percent in 2Q24, mainly because of decreased output in the natural gas and crude oil and condensate subcategories.

On the other hand, the construction industry experienced significant expansion of 19.5 percent in this quarter, an increase from 17.3 percent in the last quarter, fueled by substantial growth in all sub-categories, particularly in specialized construction tasks and commercial buildings.

Malaysia's preliminary gross domestic product (GDP) figures increased by 5.3 percent in the third quarter of 2024, down from 5.9 percent in the prior quarter. As per the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), this moderate achievement was backed by all sectors, with the services and manufacturing sectors taking the lead.

Nevertheless, there was a decrease in the mining and quarrying industry in this quarter. In total, Malaysia's economy saw a 5.1 percent growth in the first three quarters of 2024, in contrast to a 3.8 percent rise in the same period of 2023.

"In terms of quarter-on-quarter performance, Malaysia's economy increased substantially by 4.6 per cent as compared to 0.8 per cent growth in the second quarter of 2024," it said.

The services industry slowed down to 5.1 percent from 5.9 percent in the second quarter of 2024 (2Q24). The DOSM stated that the positive growth in all sub-sectors, especially in wholesale and retail trade, transportation and storage, and business services, fueled the performance.