Summary: | Malaysia’s remarkable economic performance during the past three decades is partly
due to the country’s successful export sector. Nonetheless, the growth of emerging
economies necessitates change in the structure of Malaysia’s export sector. With slow
economic growth in its primary trading partners, there is a pressing need for Malaysia to
change its current export structure, which relies heavily on western industrialised
countries as export destinations. By doing so, Malaysia can diversify its economy through
agreements with new export destinations with which it currently has low bilateral trade.
This paper aims to examine the trends of Malaysia's exports to Middle Eastern Asian
Countries (MEACs) that are similar to Malaysia in that MEACs are also Islamic
countries. Proposing MEACs as Malaysia's new main export destinations, this study will
examine the probable impact of various trade agreements signed between MEACs and
other countries on Malaysian exports to MEACs. Applying panel data analysis, this study
observes that trade agreements between MEACs and other countries do not exert
negative effects on Malaysian exports to MEACs
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