Malaysian authorities on Saturday lifted a state of emergency in two coastal communities hit hard by smoke from forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia.

An official from the meteorological department told AFP that the overall situation in haze-hit parts of Malaysia had improved, while the capital Kuala Lumpur awoke to clear blue skies.

But despite the lifting of the emergency status in Port Klang and Kuala Selangor, the two townships continued to register unhealthy air pollution levels.

The air pollutant index (API) for Port Klang fell to 105 from 314 Friday and for Kuala Selangor it eased to 117 from 293 according to early Saturday readings.

"But this could be due to changing wind directions," the official said.

Malaysia declared the state of emergency in Port Klang and Kuala Selangor on Thursday when the air pollution index reached 529 in Port Klang, a major shipping centre, and 531 in Kuala Selangor. An API above 300 is considered hazardous and 500 triggers an emergency.

Not just temporary?

After nine days of haze that shrouded Kuala Lumpur in a yellowish mist and hid the tops of the Petronas Towers, the world's second-tallest building, all of Kuala Lumpur's skyscrapers were clearly visible Saturday.

"It's a sunny day in Kuala Lumpur. This is good. Blue skies have returned after more than a week. But I hope it is not just temporary," said Jamal Salleh, 46, a trader.

"I breathe better now. Just this morning I told my mother to open all the windows, the first time in days," he added.

Haze from forest fires and blazes lit to clear land on the Indonesian island of Sumatra are an annual problem and have been blamed for the smog that has blanketed peninsular Malaysia.

Indonesia is hoping other Southeast Asian nations will help it fight the forest fires.