* For poll data click: reuters://realtime/verb=Open/url=cpurl://apps.cp./Apps/econ-polls?RIC=MYGDP%3DECI * Malaysia’s GDP seen contracting 1.9% in Q1 * GDP fell 3.4% in Q4 and 5.6% for 2020 * Coronavirus lockdowns pose downside risks to growth - Capital Economics * Q1 GDP data due on Tuesday, May 11, 0400 GMT KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 (Reuters) - The Malaysian economy should see a less severe slump in the first quarter of 2021 than it did in the previous three months, helped by resilient manufacturing activity and growing external demand, according to economists polled by Reuters. The economy is seen contracting 1.9% in the period of January to March, according to the median estimate of a Reuters poll of 11 economists, an improvement on a 3.4% contraction recorded in the fourth quarter of last year. Malaysia’s economy was propped up by robust growth in the manufacturing sector and sustained oil production, but lockdowns imposed to contain spiking coronavirus cases over the quarter will have hurt consumption, according to Alex Holmes, Asia economist for Capital Economics. “The outlook has deteriorated again in recent weeks, with a rebound in cases leading to the reimposition of restrictions,” Holmes said in a research note. “The risks to our annual forecast to growth of 6.5% are now weighted firmly to the downside.” Shipments surged in March by 31% year-on-year, the seventh-straight month of growing demand for Malaysia’s exports. But this week the government imposed movement restrictions in capital city Kuala Lumpur and most parts of surrounding Selangor state, Malaysia’s richest region, to deal with a fresh surge in COVID-19 cases. Malaysia’s central bank expects the economy to rebound this year with growth of between 6% to 7.5%. GDP shrank 5.6% in 2020 - its worst annual performance since the Asian Financial Crisis. But the “disappointingly slow” pace of the government’s coronavirus vaccine rollout will likely crimp growth, Barclays economist Brian Tan said. The government has set a December target to vaccinate 80% of Malaysia’s 32 million population. Nearly 992,000 people had received at least one vaccine dose as of Wednesday. “At its current pace, we estimate it would take another four years to provide at least one dose to 80% of the population,” said Tan, who expects Malaysia’s economy to expand 5.5% this year. Reporting by Joseph Sipalan Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.