Malaysia electronics exports to US avoid tariffs for now

ASEAN nations like Malaysia have been observing Donald Trump's tariff rhetoric with alarm. Policymakers in Kuala Lumpur and the Penang semiconductor cluster will have breathed a sigh of relief when he temporarily exempted electronics from his tariff plans.

While the president has warned the exemption will be temporary, the move underscores the difficulty of disrupting global technology supply chains, inflating costs for US consumers and businesses - and explains the market impact that might have prompted the Trump team to change course.

We've visualized Malaysia's export mix since the 1990s to distinguish between "tariffed" and "exempt" industries; as of the most recent figures, the result is roughly a 50-50 split. The "exempt" category is overwhelmingly electronics and semiconductors: other manufactured goods, including transport equipment, are caught up in the tariffs.

Interestingly, electronics have become less important to the Malaysia-to-US export mix over the past 10 years, despite the success of the industry. Exports of machinery, medical instruments and other miscellaneous goods have gained share, as our pie charts show.