KUALA LUMPUR: Although Malaysia’s economy is on the path of recovery with a projected rebound of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent in 2021, the journey is expected to be uneven and dependent on the resurgence of Covid-19 cases.
Shopee, at the launch of its 12.12 Birthday Sale, has announced several measures alongside brick-and-mortar businesses, charitable organisations as well as consumers that are integral to the vigour of Malaysia’s economy.
According to UOB Malaysia’s senior economist Julia Goh, much work is needed as the economy suffered projected losses amounting up to RM67 billion as a result of the EMCO and CMCO.
“Weak demand and tight liquidity have caused businesses to either permanently or temporarily cease operations. It was understood that the Food and Beverage (F&B) sector had cut 35 percent of its workforce during the MCO in March,” she said.
Goh added that rivate consumption will continue to be the key driver of growth in 2021, accounting for up to 60 percent of Malaysia’s GDP. “Therefore, offline retail and service sectors must find ways to thrive in a post-pandemic environment whereby higher unemployment levels may spiral into weaker purchasing power,” she said.
One way is for businesses to integrate offline and online strategies to cope with the changes brought about by the new norm and tap onto the growing potential of the digital economy.
E-commerce’s contribution to GDP grew from RM89 billion in 2015 to RM127 billion or 8.4 percent of GDP in 2019.
“While the contribution of online retail sales to overall sales is still small, it has room for strong growth,” said Goh.
Source:
NST