Malaysia

On-trade volume and fountain sales in carbonates are being supported by developments in foodservice and hospitality channels. For example, as seen with the growth of hotels in the country, such as the Hyatt Place Kuala Lumpur, INNSiDE by Meliá Kuala…

Off-trade volume sales in concentrates are relatively stable, thanks to the baseline demand for liquid concentrates in households in Malaysia. Indeed, liquid concentrates are especially in demand with large families, as they are perceived to offer…

The full lifting of COVID-19 restrictions was seen in 2022, which led to the reopening of the economy and international borders. Many consumers returned to socialising, the office and school, as they were no longer confined to the home. They were…

Sales in energy drinks are only seeing modest off-trade growth, as the category has a fairly limited consumer audience and faces competition from other soft drinks. On the positive side, the revival of domestic and international travel helps to…

Food price inflation remained elevated in 2023, as the country is a net food importer, and huge increases in the prices of imported white rice came into effect in September 2023. Although it is still unknown how overall consumer spending will be…

As of August 2023, dengue cases were up 117% year-on-year, bringing the total cases to 73,680 from January to August 2023, compared with 39,769 cases in the same period in 2022. By September 2023, cases had risen to 88,672, with a massive surge in…

Off-trade volume sales are lower than those in on-trade channels in juice, albeit still remaining positive. Consumers with large families (at least four persons per household) tend to prefer liquid concentrates over juice, seeing such as offering…

Laundry care maintained retail volume and current value growth in 2023. Although other types of laundry detergents saw stronger increases in this year, powder detergents continued to account for the highest sales. Powder is a popular format of…

Overall polishes maintained growth in retail volume and current value terms in 2023, with increases seen across all categories. However, lifestyle and fashion trends continued to militate against the development of polishes. For instance, younger…

RTD coffee is seeing fairly stable, albeit low, volume sales in both on-trade and off-trade terms. This is supported by the popularity of coffee in the country overall, with reports in mid-to-late 2023 citing Malaysia as ranked third in Asia Pacific…

Fountain sales and on-trade volume growth are supported in RTD tea, in part due to the expansion of hotels in Malaysia, such as the Hyatt Place Kuala Lumpur, INNSiDE by Meliá Kuala Lumpur, and Courtyard by Marriott Melaka. It has become the norm for…

Sales of soft drinks in Malaysia are generally benefitting from the rebound of tourism and foodservice in the post-pandemic landscape. For example, fountain sales are accelerating for carbonates and RTD tea, supported by the growth of hotels in the…

Volume sales in sports drinks are being suppressed by unit price hikes for a second consecutive year. Whilst the post-pandemic landscape supports sales of sports drinks in theory, the inflationary environment is creating challenges. Within this…

Home care disinfectants saw a retail volume decline in 2022, after the pandemic high. However, the habit of using such products remains, especially amongst many younger consumers, and those with children, and growth resumed in 2023. Consumers…

Toilet care maintained solid retail volume and current value growth in 2023, although from a relatively low base. Many consumers, especially those with young children, remain in the habit of periodically cleaning the toilet. Even post-pandemic,…

There has been a significant rise in the number of Malaysians taking up coffee drinking culture, with the country ranked third highest in terms of coffee consumption in Asia Pacific. With Malaysians becoming more coffee-savvy, there are notable…

Stand-alone remained the most popular consumer foodservice location in the Malaysian market in 2023. Most consumer foodservice operators opt for stand-alone locations for their outlets. There has been an increase in the number of consumer foodservice…

In 2023, the Malaysian consumer foodservice market saw the continued strengthening of the country’s coffee drinking culture, which provided a notable boost to the performance of the specialist coffee and tea shops channel during the year. The end of…

The full-service restaurants category is seeing growing consumer interest in Korean-influenced restaurants. The Muslim-dominated community in Malaysia is favouring Korean dining concepts, with food options such as Korean fried chicken, gaining…

The Israel-Hamas War had an impact on limited-service restaurants in Malaysia from October 2023. In the majority Muslim country of Malaysia, the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas War led to a series of boycotting events aimed at multinational chains such…