Malaysia’s Leading Index (LI) rose 1.1% year-on-year to 115.3 points in July 2026, from 114.0 points a year earlier, indicating sustained economic momentum despite external uncertainties, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
The increase was mainly driven by real imports of other basic precious and non-ferrous metals, which grew 24.1%, and real imports of semiconductors, which rose 17.4%.
On a month-on-month basis, the LI increased 0.3%, supported by real money supply (M1) and semiconductor imports. However, DOSM noted that more moderate activity in several components, particularly new company registrations, tempered the index’s overall performance.
DOSM said Malaysia’s economic outlook is expected to remain resilient, supported by a stable labour market, high-impact investments in technology sectors and sustained global demand for semiconductors and electrical and electronics (E&E) products.
Nevertheless, the smoothed long-term trend of the LI remained below the 100-point threshold.
Meanwhile, the Coincident Index (CI), which measures current economic activity, grew 1.7% year-on-year to 131.5 points in July, compared with 129.3 points in the corresponding month last year.
The increase was supported by a 5.8% rise in real Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributions and 4.5% growth in the Industrial Production Index.
On a monthly basis, the CI edged down 0.1%, reflecting weaker real EPF contributions and manufacturing capacity utilisation.
The LI diffusion index remained unchanged at 71.4%, while the CI diffusion index moderated to 66.7% from 100% in June.
