‘Malaysia’s logistics sector to ride on e-commerce boom’

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (MNTV) – The boom in e-commerce will increase the demand for distribution hubs and warehouses in Malaysia, said a research firm in a recent report.  

Kenanga Research said it sees strong demand for cold-storage warehouses on the back of the proliferation of online grocery start-ups.

Kenanga noted that local players face intense competition from Chinese players which limit local players’ ability to fully leverage Malaysia’s strong total trade growth.

This situation occurred due to the irrational pricing set by Chinese logistics players.

Kenanga also expects domestic logistic sector growth to remain steady going into 2026, supported by the global tech up-cycle led by artificial intelligence (AI) demand, a resilient US economy, and potential trade diversion amid US-China trade tensions.

The US is now Malaysia’s second largest export destination (after Singapore) “which we believe is due to trade diversion and China’s slowdown in economic growth.”

Kenanga also acknowledged that stricter regulations on carbon emissions may pose new challenges to global trade, particularly from the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization (IMO) and from the European Union (EU).

The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) could disrupt the exports of certain commodities (iron and steel, cement, aluminum, fertilizer, electricity, hydrogen) to the EU.

During the transition period between October 2023 and December 2025, EU importers must report embedded emissions in goods imported on a quarterly basis, as well as any carbon price paid to a third country.

When the CBAM takes full effect starting 2026, importers will need to buy carbon credits reflecting the emissions generated in producing them, according to Kenanga.