According to the statistics department, 10 states registered a trade surplus, namely Penang, Sarawak, Johor, Sabah, Labuan, Pahang, Terengganu, Perak, Kelantan and Perlis.

Total trade amounted to RM213 billion, with exports and imports recorded at RM115.2 billion and RM97.9 billion respectively.

Chief statistician Uzir Mahidin said exports dropped 18.6% y-o-y due to lower exports in most states.

The largest declines were observed in Penang (-RM9.1 billion), Johor  (-RM7.9 billion), Selangor (-RM3.6 billion), Sarawak (-RM2.7 billion) and Kuala Lumpur (-RM2.5 billion).

The only increase in exports were witnessed in Labuan (RM719.1 million), Kedah (RM431.3 million) and Negeri Sembilan (RM246.8 million).

Penang remained as the top exporter with a 28.8% share, followed by Johor (22.1%), Selangor (18.4%), Sarawak (7.9%) and Kedah (4.2%).

The performance of imports also decreased by 21.2% y-o-y in August.

Leading the decline in imports was Johor (-RM12.2 billion), followed by Penang (-RM6.2 billion), Selangor (-RM4.2 billion), Negeri Sembilan (-RM1.2 billion) and Kuala Lumpur (-RM721.2 million).

However, Terengganu saw an increase in imports by RM188.1 million.

Selangor continued to dominate Malaysia’s imports with a share of 27.7%, followed by Johor (21.1%), Penang (21.1%), Kuala Lumpur (7.1%) and Kedah (5.9%).