Malaysia’s Post-Lockdown Unemployment Rate Forecast to Reach 6.5% in Q2 2020: Socio-Economic Research Centre

Malaysia’s Socio-Economic Research Centre (SERC) reported in its quarterly economy tracker briefing that up to 53,952 individuals (taken from the Government of Malaysia’s post work insurance scheme, SOSCO) were made unemployed between January and the 4th of July 2020.

Local media reports note that this figure doesn’t cover the 2.7 million self-employed individuals in the country. Whilst the second quarter 2020 (Q2 2020) figures have not yet been published, SERC estimates second quarter 2020 (Q2 2020)’s unemployment rate will range between 5.5% and 6.5%, this being much higher than the regular unemployment rate of 3.1%.

Executive Director at SERC, Lee Heng Gu...