KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER) has lowered its growth outlook this year to 4.5 per cent, saying external demand is not likely to be as strong as expected. Dr Zakariah also highlighted that a rise in protectionist sentiment in developed economies, thanks to recent political developments across the world, will affect growth. Export demand has been downgraded to 1.3 per cent from an initial forecast of 3.0 per cent a year. MIER has maintained its GDP growth projection for 2016 at 4.2 per cent, led by domestic demand. For 2018, the economy is expected to grow at a faster clip of between 4.7 per cent and 5.3 per cent, as the think tank expects both domestic and export demand to improve further.

Source: New Strait Times January 19, 2017 06:38 UTC