KUALA LUMPUR, March 18 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia's exports fell slightly by 0.8 percent year-on-year to 111.33 billion ringgit (23.6 billion U.S. dollars) in February amid lower shipments of electrical and electronic (E&E) products.

The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry said in a statement on Monday that the exports of manufactured goods, which comprised 83.6 percent of total exports, fell by 2.4 percent year-on-year to 93.08 billion ringgit in the month.

The decrease was attributed mainly to lower exports of E&E products, petroleum products as well as chemicals and chemical products.

Meanwhile, exports of mining goods (9.7 percent share) rebounded with a double-digit expansion of 16.8 percent to 10.74 billion ringgit in February, backed by robust exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG), crude petroleum as well as petroleum condensates and other petroleum oil.

Exports of agriculture goods (6.1 percent share), however, declined by 4.8 percent year-on-year to 6.81 billion ringgit, due to lower exports of palm oil and palm oil-based agriculture products that were affected by weaker prices of exports.

Overall, Malaysia's trade continued its positive trend in February, growing 3.3 percent year-on-year to 211.79 billion ringgit.

Malaysia's imports for the month rose by 8.4 percent year-on-year to 100.46 billion ringgit. Its trade surplus in February was valued at 10.87 billion ringgit.

As for the first two months, Malaysia's trade rose 8.3 percent year-on-year to 446.43 billion ringgit. Exports for the period increased by 3.9 percent to 233.74 billion ringgit, while imports went up 13.6 percent to 212.69 billion ringgit. Trade surplus for the two months stood at 21.04 billion ringgit.

The ministry said it is cautiously optimistic and remains vigilant of global risks, while proactively looking out for export opportunities to both existing and new markets.

The ministry is also attracting more high-quality investments which would, in turn, increase Malaysia's future manufacturing and services exports' value. (1 ringgit equals 0.21 U.S. dollar) Enditem

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