The main objective of this paper is to reinvestigate the impacts of non-tariff measures (NTMs) on bilateral exports among Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) countries. The study adds to the literature in two areas. First, we calculate coverage ratios for NTMs related to specific sustainable development goals (SDGs) imposed on bilateral trade between RCEP member countries. Second, to avoid aggregation bias, the analysis covers four major sectors, namely agrifood, health, logistics, and other manufacturing. The results of a Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood (PPML) regression in a gravity model, using average import data from 2016 to 2018 at the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding Systems (HS) two-digit level (97 subsectors), show that the effects of SDG-related NTMs vary by sector. NTMs related to SDG 3 (good health and well-being) distort trade in health but enhance trade in logistics. NTMs related to SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production) have a negative impact on logistics but a positive impact on other manufacturing exports. The findings provide new perspectives on the varying impacts of SDG-related NTMs on trade. Interestingly, the study finds that NTMs addressing SDGs 3 and 12 have positive trade impacts. Policymakers should, however, regulate NTM implementation, to minimize negative impacts and ensure that domestic firms comply to promote sustainable production.

This study analyzes the impact of COVID-19 on Malaysia’s bilateral export in three categories of goods. The results show that higher numbers of COVID-19 cases among trading partners has led to higher levels of bilateral export for capital and consumption goods. Meanwhile, incremental increases in a trading partner’s policy stringency index has lowered the level of bilateral export for capital goods. These negative impacts highlight the need for support policies to ensure the survival of domestic producers during the current pandemic.

Kemeruapan kadar pertukaran yang tinggi mewujudkan ketakpastian dan mempengaruhi ekonomi sesebuah negara. Ini dapat dilihat apabila kenaikan atau penyusutan nilai mata wang menjejaskan aliran perdagangan antara negara. Kertas ini mengkaji kewujudan fenomena keluk-J melalui kesan perubahan kadar pertukaran ke atas imbangan dagangan dua hala antara Malaysia dengan China bagi 17 industri perdagangan utama. Selain itu, kajian juga menilai kesan perubahan kadar pertukaran ke atas imbangan dagangan sama ada berlaku secara simetrik atau bukan simetrik (asimetrik). Kajian menggunakan data bulanan bermula Januari 2013 sehingga April 2018. Hasil kajian membuktikan kewujudan keluk-J bagi 5 daripada 17 industri perdagangan utama. Selain itu, hasil kajian juga menunjukkan bahawa penggunaan model ARDL tidak linear dapat membuktikan kesan asimetrik perubahan kadar pertukaran ke atas imbangan dagangan. Keputusan kajian memberi panduan kepada pembuat dasar mengenai kesan perubahan positif dan negatif kadar pertukaran terhadap eksport dan import industri utama negara ke China. Sekali gus, perkara ini dapat digunakan bagi mengesan dan mengatasi masalah inflasi diimport.

Palm oils have been proven to have the highest yield among vegetable oils, which is one of the critical factors in ensuring global food security. However, the world palm oil market has not been entirely utilised due to intervention policies that disrupt the global trade flow. Hence, this study aims to identify the technical efficiency of palm oil exports and then analyse the export potential of two leading producers and exporters of palm oil, Malaysia and Indonesia. A stochastic frontier model (SFM) has been used to estimate the level of technical efficiency across two countries for a sample of 59 major palm oil importing countries during 2009–2019. Palm oil export potential is then calculated using the value of technical export efficiency obtained from the SFM. The main findings revealed the technical inefficiency of world palm oil exports. Comparing the two countries, the Indonesian average technical efficiency value is higher than Malaysian throughout the year. Moreover, the technical efficiency estimates reveal that Malaysia and Indonesia dominate different markets, except in the Netherlands. In terms of export potential, the study found that both major exporting countries of palm oil have great potential to tap more into the same countries, namely China, India, Thailand and the United States. The policy implications of this study suggest that policymakers from both countries should set up a new combined strategy to maximise the palm oil export to their trading partners. Low technical efficiency values in several importing countries show great potential to explore further. Hence, there is a vast potential market for palm oil export to be tapped in those countries.