KUALA LUMPUR: Global economic outlook remains uncertain due to ongoing geopolitical tensions and the heightened risk of both tariff and non-tariff barriers between major economies, particularly the United States and China, the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) said.
While some central banks have started to loosen monetary policy, the fund highlighted that concerns over political instability, fiscal imbalances, and regional conflicts continue to weigh on market sentiment and erode investor confidence.
The International Monetary Fund has revised its global growth projection for 2025 downward to 2.8 per cent, a 0.5 percentage point drop from its January estimate.
In line with this, Malaysia's gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for 2025 is also expected to fall slightly below the earlier estimate of 4.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent, reflecting a wider trend of downward revisions across the region.
EPF chief executive officer Ahmad Zulqarnain Onn said the downward adjustments to global and regional growth projections, including Malaysia's, highlight increasing external risks amid evolving global trade dynamics.
He said in the face of a more uncertain and challenging market landscape, the EPF continues to uphold a dynamic and broadly diversified portfolio to protect asset value and mitigate potential risks.
"We continue to actively explore investment opportunities across both domestic and international markets to strengthen our portfolio and support long-term, sustainable returns for our members," he added.
Meanwhile, EPF said it added 140,111 new members in the first quarter of 2025 (1Q25), bringing its total membership to 16.3 million.
"Of these, 8.88 million are active members, representing 51.3 per cent of the 17.31 million labour force.
"The EPF's active-to-inactive member ratio remained stable at 54:46 in 1Q25," it said.
The fund said 19,600 new employers registered in 1Q25, bringing the total number of active employers with the EPF to 616,558.
Total contributions rose by 15.1 per cent, reaching RM33.54 billion compared to RM29.13 billion in the same period last year.
"Meanwhile, total voluntary contributions increased by 62 per cent to RM7.02 billion, from RM4.33 billion a year earlier.
"The number of formal sector members contributing above the statutory rate was 10,990 in 1Q25, compared to 6,771 in the same period last year," EPF said.