Its lead economist for Malaysia Apurva Sanghi said Malaysia enters this crisis period “mostly from a position of strength”.
He cited Malaysia’s resilient macroeconomic fundamentals, even as downside risks from geopolitical conflicts, trade tensions and structural shifts in global supply chains cloud the economic outlook.
Malaysia’s economy grew by 5.2% last year on strong domestic demand and favourable exports. Bank Negara Malaysia has projected the economy to grow at between 4% and 5% in 2026.
Apurva noted that the last two times Malaysia entered a crisis was at the eve of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019, and the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022.
He said on the eve of the pandemic, Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth was 4.4% in 2019.
“Malaysia’s economic growth exceeded expectations in 2025. It’s above 5% today, above the regional average,” he said during a briefing on Part 1 of the World Bank’s April 2026 Malaysia Economic Monitor.
He added that real income per capita was about RM43,000 in 2019 compared to about RM49,000 currently. In terms of the unemployment rate, he said it was 3.3% during the Covid-19 period while it is less than 3% today. However, inflation was 0.7% back then compared to 1.6% today.
Apurva noted the country’s major macroeconomic metrics are healthier today compared to the previous crisis periods.
He also said Malaysia is less exposed from a regional perspective. “Our assessment is that Malaysia is increasingly being seen as a safe haven for the region, reflecting strong fundamentals, growing fiscal discipline, and strong financial system performance,” he added.
He said Malaysia’s economic growth in 2026 would be driven mainly by private consumption.
“We expect domestic demand to be strong this year because of favourable labour market dynamics, with real median wages rising by 6% last year, as well as continued government support where required.
“So private consumption is definitely a key contributor to growth,” he added.
Apurva said investment momentum remains solid, with strong inflows for intermediate and capital goods, and continued foreign investment in key sectors such as information and communication technology, electrical and electronics, chemicals and data centres.
He noted that near-term downside risks are mainly external, stemming from protracted conflict in the Middle East, persistent policy uncertainty, escalating trade restrictions, a sharper slowdown in China, tighter global financial conditions, or a downturn in the technology cycle.
To strengthen resilience, he said Malaysia can deepen its trade openness by lowering barriers and accelerating targeted sectoral reforms.
“Together, these reforms would broaden Malaysia’s export base, reinforce supply chain integration, and better position the economy to withstand external shocks while capturing emerging trade opportunities,” he added.