Economy grows 5.6 percent in third quarter: Bank Negara

comments     Eileen Ng     Published     Updated

Malaysia's economy expanded 5.6 percent in the third quarter to September from a year earlier and is on track to grow four to five percent in 2002, said Bank Negara today.

Gross domestic product (GDP) during the three months was also up 3.4 percent from the previous quarter, due to a recovery in electrical products exports and strong domestic demand.

The pace of year-on-year growth picked up from 3.9 percent in the second quarter and 1.1 percent in the first three months. For the first nine months of the year, GDP grew 3.5 percent.

Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz said GDP growth could strengthen further in the fourth quarter but any US-led war against Iraq would slow down the country's recovery.

She said the government may lift its spending and loosen monetary policy to boost the economy in the event of a sharp global slowdown.

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