Malaysia’s Growth Slows Less Than Expected on Exports, Services

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia's economic growth slowed less than expected after overseas shipments and factory output held up, a rebound that may prove short-lived as investment falters.

Gross domestic product rose 4.5 percent in the three months through December from a year earlier, after climbing 4.7 percent in the previous quarter, the government said in a statement Thursday. That compares with a 4.1 percent median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. The economy grew 5 percent in 2015.

The ringgit fell more than any other Asian currency against the dollar last year, making Malaysia’s goods more attractive to overseas buyers. That is countered by a slump in crude that has curbed government revenues and prompted Prime Minister Najib Razak to trim the growth forecast for 2016, while rising costs crimp business investment.

“Manufacturing and services are still doing OK,” Rahul Bajoria, a Singapore-based economist at Barclays Plc, said before the announcement. “It is not growing at the same pace as was say, back in 2014, but it’s not slowing down as dramatically as one would think it would with all the headwinds that are there.”

The ringgit gained 1.2 percent against the dollar in Kuala Lumpur Thursday. The Malaysian currency has appreciated about 3 percent against the U.S. dollar this year, rebounding after a 19 percent decline in 2015.

By Chong Pooi Koon, with assistance from Michael J. Munoz; editors: Stephanie Phang and Shamim Adam.