KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 11 — RHB Research expects Malaysia's real gross domestic product (GDP) growth to move at a slower pace of 4.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2015, from 5.6 per cent recorded in the first quarter of 2015.

In a note today, the research house said industrial production growth moderated slightly to 4.3 per cent in June from 4.5 per cent in May but was stronger compared with four per cent in April.

“This was mainly reflected in a decline in the electricity output and a slowdown in mining production, but was partly mitigated by a pick-up in manufacturing output, on the back of a resurgence in manufactured exports led by the electronics sector,” it said.

In the same vein, RHB Research said manufacturing sales rebounded with a growth of 1.7 per cent in June, from 4.2 per cent in May and compared with a decline of 0.6 per cent in April, in line with the pick-up in manufacturing production.

The research house also cut its real GDP growth forecast for 2015 to 4.5-4.8 per cent, from five per cent projected previously and compared with six per cent in 2014.

It attributed this to consumers and businesses gradually adjusting to the new consumption tax, the impact from the lower oil prices on oil and gas investment, and government spending that would likely constrain the growth in domestic demand.

Moving forward, it said the global economic recovery remained uneven and slow and believed that the recovery in the second quarter of 2015 would likely continue to be modest amid headwinds.

“Notwithstanding the challenges faced by the global economy, we expect the country's real exports to grow by 2.7 per cent in 2015, albeit at a more moderate pace compared with 5.1 per cent in 2014,” it said. — Bernama