The two-week closure of businesses comes as the country's health ministry announced 9,020 new COVID cases on Saturday.
There were 61 reported COVID deaths on Friday, taking the total for the country to 2,552.
However, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said on Friday that all businesses would be closed except for essential servicesIf there were a drop in cases some economic sectors could reopen in the second phase, which would last four weeks. The government introduced a state of emergency in January to curb the spread of the virus, suspending parliament and essentially putting an end to political activities.Muhyiddin said that his government would boost the healthcare system and increase the number of vaccinations although critics say that the rollout of jabs has been slow, Reuters reported.
On Saturday the ministry of home affairs announced that 70,000 troops would be deployed around the country to enforce the lockdown.