Malaysia — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Malaysia: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
Malaysia — in Southeastern Asia, peninsula bordering Thailand and northern one-third of the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia, Brunei, and the South China Sea, south of Vietnam. Political status: federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. It covers 329,847 sq km. Terrain: coastal plains rising to hills and mountains. Climate: tropical; annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons.
| Capital | Kuala Lumpur |
|---|---|
| Population | 34,905,275 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $1.212 trillion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $34,100 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 5.1% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 1.8% (2024 est.) |
| Unemployment | 3.9% (2024 est.) |
| Public debt | 64.3% of GDP (2023 est.) |
| Exports | $301.789 billion (2024 est.) |
| Imports | $279.09 billion (2024 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 76.6 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 32.2 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 78.7% of total population (2023) |
| Government | federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
| Independence | 31 August 1957 (from the UK) |
| Languages | Bahasa Malaysia (official), English, Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan, Foochow), Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Panjabi, Thai |
Malaysia’s GDP is $1.212 trillion (2024 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $421.972 billion (2024 est.). Real GDP grew 5.1% (2024 est.). See where Malaysia ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum +2 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
The growth run continued — first-half figures stayed strong on trade and a firm ringgit — keeping Malaysia among Asia's outperformers.
Political steadiness under Anwar added the calm. A modestly positive quarter, earned on the data.
- What our model rewards: inflation tamed at 1.8%; a current-account surplus of $7 billion — the world pays it more than it pays out
- What drags it down: only 20% of electricity from low-carbon sources
Tin, Oil, Timber, Copper, Iron ore, Natural gas, Bauxite.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 100% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 81.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 1.1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 16.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 113.163 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Primary energy consumption (OWID) | 1,382.0 TWh (2024) |
| Electricity generation (OWID) | 198.2 TWh (2024) |
| Energy per capita (OWID) | 38,866 kWh per person (2024) |
| Electricity generation mix (OWID) | Coal 43.0%, Gas 36.7%, Hydro 16.9%, Solar 2.1%, Oil 0.6% (2024) |
| Low-carbon share of electricity (OWID) | 19.7% (2024) |
| Carbon intensity of electricity (OWID) | 604.4 gCO2/kWh (2024) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2024.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Exports | $301.789 billion (2024 est.) |
|---|---|
| Imports | $279.09 billion (2024 est.) |
| Trade balance (calculated) | Surplus of $22.7 billion (2024), calculated from the CIA export and import figures above. |
| Key industries | Peninsular Malaysia - rubber and oil palm processing and manufacturing, petroleum and natural gas, light manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, medical technology, electronics and semiconductors, timber processing; Sabah - logging, petroleum and natural gas production; Sarawak - agriculture processing, petroleum and natural gas production, logging |
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Anwar Ibrahim — Prime Minister. King Sultan IBRAHIM ibni al-Marhum Sultan Iskandar (since 31 January 2024)
Malaysia maintains 106 embassies abroad, hosts 101 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to ASEAN Jakarta, UN New York, UN Geneva, UNESCO Paris. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 106 |
|---|---|
| Foreign missions hosted | 101 |
| Multilateral missions | ASEAN Jakarta, UN New York, UN Geneva, UNESCO Paris |
Source: Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index 2024 (released 2024-02-25), https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/; Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions in Malaysia'
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 4675 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 100 + 24 heliports (registration prefix 9M) |
| Major seaports | Johor, Kota Kinabalu, Port Dickson, Port Klang, Pulau Pinang, Tanjung Pelepas, Tapis Marine Terminal A |
| Railways | 1851 km |
Major airports
Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI) — Kota Kinabalu; Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL) — Sepang; Kuching International Airport (KCH) — Kuching; Langkawi International Airport (LGK) — Langkawi; Penang International Airport (PEN) — Penang; Senai International Airport (JHB) — Johor Bahru; Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah International Airport (SZB) — Subang; Sultan Azlan Shah Airport (IPH) — Ipoh; Bario Airport (BBN) — Bario; Bintulu Airport (BTU) — Bintulu.
Showing 10 of 15 major airports.
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28)
| Political system | federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
|---|---|
| Last election | 2022 — general; 2022-11-19; winner: Anwar Ibrahim (Pakatan Harapan (PH)); Ended Malaysia's 2020-2022 political crisis; first PM chosen via King's discretion in hung parliament Reuters / Frontline |
| Next election | 2027 — general (scheduled) |
Source: constitutional schedule / public election calendar
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Malaysia.
Historical timeline of Malaysia
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of Malaysia — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is Malaysia's power score?
Malaysia has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.