Some leading Asian producers posted significantly better export figures in February but, economists warned, their improvements may not be sustainable and the performance of Japan and China worsened.

The rate of annual decline in exports was roughly halved for South Korea and Thailand. The slowdown of shipments also decelerated significantly for Taiwan and Singapore. Vietnam this week reported, before the end of the period, that its first quarter exports will have risen 2 per cent from a year ago on the back of booming rice and gold exports.

Economists warn against drawing too much comfort from the figures. Noting the continued gloomy outlook, the Malaysian central bank yesterday forecast that exports would still decline 25.3 per cent this year.