Malaysia's Time Varying Capital Mobility

This paper examines the dynamics of the degree of capital mobility for Malaysia for the period 1991Q1-2009Q4. Generally Malaysia has been an open economy for trade, however periodic episodes of capital control such as those in 1994 and 1998 means that the level of capital mobility in Malaysia might be time varying. In order to measure the degree of capital mobility, this paper uses the Shibata and Shintani (1998) model that examines the relationship between consumption and output. The results show that for the period investigated, the degree of capital mobility relatively low, especially after the 1997/98 East Asia financial crisis. Meanwhile the periods of capital control show a reduction in the degree of capital mobility.