GDP results delayed as Malaysia mourns king


The king's body is carried by soldiers and sailors through Kuala Lumpur, his casket draped in royal yellow

By staff and wire reports

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Malaysia's central bank put off releasing growth figures on Thursday, as the nation mourned its dead king.

The government declared Thursday a public holiday, the start of a week of public mourning for Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah.

He died on Wednesday at 75 after an unsuccessful heart operation.

Flags flew at half mast as his body was taken in a hand-drawn carriage through the center of Kuala Lumpur.

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, also 75, led the list of dignitaries who attended a prayer ceremony in the king's honor at the capital's main mosque.

The mourners also included his queen and fourth wife, Siti Aishah, whom he married in 1990 when she was 19.

The popular king was one of nine traditional rulers who take turns in a figurehead role. He was buried at the royal mausoleum at Jugra, near the family palace and around an hour from Kuala Lumpur.

A new king will now be chosen over the next four weeks, as Malaysia's nine rulers decide which of them will take the throne next.

The monarch's son has already been proclaimed Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, ruler of the central state of Selangor.

GDP unlikely to be pretty


The king with Queen Siti Aishah at the royal palace, during their 1990 wedding

The country was due to put out its figures for third quarter growth today. But in respect for the monarch, the central Bank Negara said it will release the data at 4:15 p.m. local time on Friday instead.

It is not expected to be pretty. Experts believe Malaysia is basically in recession and will post a 0.7 percent drop in its GDP, year over year.

That would be its first negative quarter in over two years. Developing countries like Malaysia often post outsize growth figures, so some economists believe they can effectively enter recession even with modest growth.

However, Malaysia grew a modest 0.5 percent in the second quarter, so it will not meet the textbook definition of recession: two negative quarters in a row.

South Korea on Thursday posted strong third quarter growth of 1.8 percent, year over year. But that makes it one of Asia's top performers, likely to scrape a gain for the year.

Malaysia's neighbor Singapore is suffering a stark recession, and said last week its economy shrank 5.6 percent last quarter. Taiwan posted a decline that was almost as bad.

Both tech- and export-driven economies are in recession, and much of Asia is headed that way.

Reuters contributed to this report.