How Competitive Is Malaysia’s Agrifood Sector? Insights From a Cross-Country Comparison in ASEAN

Abstract

Malaysia’s food trade deficits have continued to widen over time, highlighting persistent challenges in agrifood competitiveness, particularly in reducing import dependence, improving productivity, and strengthening the country’s ability to compete in both domestic and international food markets. Therefore, this paper assesses the competitiveness of Malaysia’s agrifood sector relative to other ASEAN countries in the production and trade of four essential commodities: rice, beef, poultry, and fishery products. The comparison was made with Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Cambodia. Singapore was excluded due to its status as a non-producing country. The study utilised time series data from 1992 to 2023, classified under the Harmonised System Code, obtained from the United Nations Commodity Trade Database and the Food and Agriculture Organisation. Competitiveness was estimated using Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA), Relative Trade Advantage (RTA), and Revealed Symmetric Comparative Advantage (RSCA). Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam have a strong comparative advantage in rice production, while other ASEAN countries have a disadvantage. Laos and Myanmar exhibit a strong comparative advantage in beef production, whereas Thailand has a moderate advantage. Cambodia, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines lack a comparative advantage in the beef sector. Malaysia stands out as the only ASEAN country that has shown a strong comparative advantage in poultry production, with no other nation developing a significant challenge to its position. Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Brunei have strong comparative advantages in fisheries production. Thailand has a medium advantage, while Vietnam and Cambodia have low advantages, and Laos faces a disadvantage in the fisheries sector.  Overall, Malaysia's competitiveness is confined to poultry throughout the study period, compared with the other eight ASEAN countries. The study is significant because it systematically assesses Malaysia’s agrifood competitiveness relative to key ASEAN peers, thereby improving understanding of and addressing persistent food trade deficits.