Malaysia’s unemployment rate remained at 3.3% in February 2024, unchanged from the preceding month, reports The Star, citing the Statistics Department. The number of unemployed persons, however, was slightly lower at 567,000 as compared to 567,300 in January 2024.

Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the country’s labour force position remained stable in line with the development of current economic activities, recording a continuing positive trend in the number of employed persons, while the number of unemployed persons fell slightly. “February’s labour force participation rate stood at 70.2% as recorded in the preceding month,” he said in a statement.

He said most economic sectors were anticipated to expand in 2024, with the services and manufacturing sectors likely to be the key drivers of overall growth.

Meanwhile, Malaysia's labour market is projected to remain stable in 2024, with the average unemployment rate at 3.2%, consistent with the 2023 rate of 3.4%, according to Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd (Kenanga IB). It said this reflected the continuous employment growth observed recently.

"This is largely attributed to the expected steady expansion in economic activities driven by strong domestic demand,” the bank stated. “We project gross domestic product (GDP) growth to reach 3.3% in the first quarter of 2024 (4Q 2023: 3.0%) with an overall 2024 GDP growth forecast ranging from 4.5 to 5%.”

Kenanga IB also said structural issues in the labour market remain concerning, particularly the persistent youth unemployment rate (age: 15-24 years), which remained at 10.6% in February for the fourth consecutive month, affecting 306,600 people.

At the same time, Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd (HLIB) stated that Malaysia’s labour market is expected to continue benefiting from a further rise in tourism activities and its positive spill-over effect on related sectors such as wholesale and retail trade, food and beverage, and accommodation, as well as the implementation of national projects.