Total factor productivity in Malaysia
Malaysia: Total factor productivity was 1.04 in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.04
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
15th
of 120 countries
All-time high
1.74
in 1971
All-time low
0.9483
in 1998
Years of data
65
1959–2023
Total factor productivity in Malaysia, 1959–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for total factor productivity in Malaysia is 1.04, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total factor productivity in Malaysia peaked at 1.74 in 1971 and was at its lowest, 0.9483, in 1998.
Malaysia ranks 15th of 120 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Total factor productivity in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 | 1.35 | — |
| 1960 | 1.41 | +4.4% |
| 1961 | 1.45 | +3.2% |
| 1962 | 1.46 | +0.6% |
| 1963 | 1.48 | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 1.48 | -0.1% |
| 1965 | 1.51 | +1.8% |
| 1966 | 1.53 | +1.7% |
| 1967 | 1.51 | -1.4% |
| 1968 | 1.55 | +2.1% |
| 1969 | 1.56 | +0.8% |
| 1970 | 1.56 | +0.3% |
| 1971 | 1.74 | +11.5% |
| 1972 | 1.73 | -0.9% |
| 1973 | 1.74 | +0.8% |
| 1974 | 1.69 | -3.0% |
| 1975 | 1.56 | -7.4% |
| 1976 | 1.58 | +1.4% |
| 1977 | 1.57 | -0.8% |
| 1978 | 1.54 | -1.9% |
| 1979 | 1.53 | -0.8% |
| 1980 | 1.47 | -4.0% |
| 1981 | 1.38 | -5.9% |
| 1982 | 1.31 | -5.5% |
| 1983 | 1.26 | -3.8% |
| 1984 | 1.23 | -2.0% |
| 1985 | 1.14 | -7.5% |
| 1986 | 1.1 | -3.4% |
| 1987 | 1.11 | +1.2% |
| 1988 | 1.15 | +3.0% |
| 1989 | 1.16 | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 1.15 | -0.7% |
| 1991 | 1.14 | -0.7% |
| 1992 | 1.13 | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 1.12 | -0.9% |
| 1994 | 1.11 | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 1.08 | -2.2% |
| 1996 | 1.07 | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 1.05 | -2.6% |
| 1998 | 0.9483 | -9.3% |
| 1999 | 0.9858 | +4.0% |
| 2000 | 1.02 | +3.7% |
| 2001 | 0.9935 | -2.9% |
| 2002 | 1 | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 1.02 | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 1.04 | +2.8% |
| 2005 | 1.05 | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 1.06 | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 1.08 | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 1.09 | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 1.04 | -5.2% |
| 2010 | 1.05 | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 1.03 | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 1.04 | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 1.02 | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 1.03 | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 1.03 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 1.03 | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 1.04 | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 1.05 | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 1.05 | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 1.01 | -4.1% |
| 2021 | 1 | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 1.04 | +3.7% |
| 2023 | 1.04 | +0.3% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 1.04 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.9902, 1.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 1.04 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.9955, 1.0× the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.35 | 1.35 | 1.35 | 1 |
| 1960s | 1.49 | 1.41 | 1.56 | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.62 | 1.53 | 1.74 | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.23 | 1.1 | 1.47 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.08 | 0.9483 | 1.15 | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.04 | 0.9935 | 1.09 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.04 | 1.02 | 1.05 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.02 | 1 | 1.04 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More economy & growth data for Malaysia
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.04 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.97 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 13.04 billion BoP, current US$ (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0309 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 366.69 BoP, current US$ per person (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 15.59 billion BoP, current US$ (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 96.92 % change on previous year (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0369 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 438.53 BoP, current US$ per person (2024)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 8.09 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total factor productivity in Malaysia?
- Total factor productivity in Malaysia was 1.04 in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest total factor productivity recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.74 in 1971.
- What is the lowest total factor productivity recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9483 in 1998.
- How does Malaysia rank for total factor productivity?
- Malaysia ranks 15th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is total factor productivity rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Total factor productivity. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
This is the level of total factor productivity, relative to each country's value in 2021 (which is set to 1). This data is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.