Frequently Asked Question

Concepts and Definition in Compiling Trade Statistics

What do total imports mean?

Goods are regarded as imports when they are brought into the country either directly or into bonded warehouses, irrespective of whether such goods are for consumption, to be processed, use in manufacturing or subsequent re-exports to other countries.

What do total exports mean?

Total exports include all goods leaving the country through customs for a foreign destination. It consists of the sum of domestic exports and re-exports.

Total Exports = Domestic Exports + Re-exports

What do domestic exports mean?

Domestic exports consist of the exports of all goods grown, produced, extracted or manufactured in Malaysia leaving the country through customs for a foreign destination.

Exports of imported merchandise which has been substantially enhanced in value are also included.

What do re-exports mean?

Re-exports “foreign exports in Malaysia” refer to the export of goods that have previously entered Malaysia and are leaving in the same condition as when first imported.

Exports of imported merchandise which has been minimally processed but not substantially enhanced in value are also counted as re-exports.

What does trade balance mean?

The trade balance represents the difference between exports and imports of goods between the trader and one or more of its international trading partners.

Trade Balance = Total Exports – Total Imports

Trade deficit – The trade balance is negative if the trader imports more goods than it exports.

Trade surplus – The trade balance is positive if the trader exports more goods than it imports.

What is the Harmonized System (HS)?

The Harmonized System (HS) is an international commodity classification developed under the auspices of the World Customs Organization, an independent intergovernmental body.

The HS is used by more than 200 countries and economies as a basis for their customs tariffs and for the collection of international trade statistics. Over 98 percent of the merchandise in international trade is classified in terms of the HS. Logical structure and is supported by well-defined rules to achieve uniform classification.

Can I find statistics relating to quantities of goods traded?

No statistics are available with regards to the quantities of goods traded.

In the case of trade by industry, this is simply not possible because of the mix of units (e.g. numbers, kilograms, liters, square meters and so on).

What is the country of origin?

The country or origin is the country in which the goods were grown, extracted or manufactured.

What is the country of destination?

The country of destination is the country which is the last known destination of the goods at the time of export.

If the shipper does not know the country of ultimate destination, the shipment is credited to the last country to which the shipper knows that the merchandise will be shipped in the same form as when exported.

What does trader mean?

The trader is the country that records imported goods coming in or exported goods leaving through customs.