Penang shipped 52.6% of Malaysia's record RM215.1 billion of exports in September, state-level figures from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) showed on Oct. 28, as the northern island's chip and electronics plants supplied most of the country's fastest export growth in more than five years.

Penang's exports rose RM55.5 billion from a year earlier, according to the DOSM breakdown reported by The Star. That is roughly three-quarters of the RM75.9 billion increase in Malaysia's total exports over the same period. For investors in Asia, the numbers show how closely Malaysia's trade and growth outlook now track the global spending cycle on artificial intelligence hardware, and how concentrated that exposure has become in a single state.

Malaysia's Exports Top RM200 Billion for the First Time

The national figures, released Oct. 19, were already striking. Exports climbed 54.5% from a year earlier, the fastest pace since April 2021, and crossed RM200 billion in a month for the first time, according to DOSM. Imports rose 52.7% to RM181.4 billion, leaving a trade surplus of RM33.7 billion. Malaysia has now run a surplus for 77 straight months, going back to May 2020.

Month on month, exports grew 12.6% from RM191 billion in August, according to official data reported by Bernama.

Electrical and electronic products did most of the work. Shipments in the category rose 69.2% to RM110.23 billion, or 51.2% of all exports, according to the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI). The ministry tied the broader gains this year to steady demand for semiconductors and rising AI investment. Optical and scientific equipment exports rose RM2.4 billion, and petroleum product exports rose 33.2%.

U.S. and Taiwan Lead Demand

By market, the biggest jumps came from buyers of electronics. Exports to the United States rose 89.9% to a record RM38.03 billion, while shipments to Taiwan grew 175.2% to RM21.45 billion, the highest on record, according to MITI. Exports to ASEAN neighbors reached a record RM59.55 billion, with Singapore alone taking RM35.45 billion.

China was a different story. Exports there grew a more modest 22.1% to RM20.39 billion, but imports from China jumped 67.6% to RM52.29 billion, MITI data showed. Imports of intermediate goods, the parts and materials that feed Malaysian assembly and testing lines, rose 69.6% to RM92.1 billion, according to official data reported by Bernama. Hong Kong also bought more: exports there rose 86.3% to RM15.01 billion, in line with the AI-led surge in Hong Kong's own September exports.

For the first nine months of 2026, exports rose 34% to RM1.571 trillion and the trade surplus more than doubled to RM232.38 billion, MITI said.

Penang, Johor and Selangor Carry the Load

The state data show where that money lands. Penang, Johor and Selangor together handled 80.5% of Malaysia's total trade in September, according to the DOSM report covered by The Star.

Johor, the southern state across the causeway from Singapore, ranked second with 17.5% of exports, up RM10.2 billion from a year earlier. Selangor, the industrial belt around Kuala Lumpur, was third at 11.7%, up RM4.1 billion. Sarawak followed with 5.3%, and Kuala Lumpur with 3.3%.

The imports picture was more spread out. Penang took 35.3% of imports, up RM37.2 billion, while Johor took 24.2%, up RM15.2 billion, and Selangor 19.5%.

Not every state shared in the gains. Exports from Sabah fell RM459.1 million and Terengganu's dropped RM383.3 million, the figures showed. Smaller declines came from Melaka and Perlis.

The government expects the run to continue. Citing the Finance Ministry's Economic Outlook 2027, MITI said it projects total trade to grow 27.2% this year, with exports up 31%.

MITI also cautioned that shifting trade policies in major economies and conflicts in West Asia could disrupt trade flows and raise costs. The ministry said it and the Malaysia External Trade Development Corp. would keep working to widen exporters' markets.

DOSM's next monthly trade release, covering October, is scheduled for Nov. 20.