Malaysia has inherited from its colonial past a good educational foundation, world class commercial legal system, established western trade relationships and more so, fluency in English, being the international language of business.
The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) gives Malaysia the added advantage. The CPTTP opens up new markets to Malaysian businesses, said Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCI) President Christina Tee on a note.
An example would be the setting up of processing plants in CPTTP partner Canada where raw materials can be exported with minimal tariffs and then exporting into the United States using the Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the United States.
Government Linked Companies with many decades of capacity building can take advantage of the CPTPP’s protection and open access to lead the way overseas bringing along Malaysian SMEs in its wake.
Progressive Competitiveness
For a foreign company to set up and compete in Malaysia, it has to be really competitive to match against a locally established Malaysian businesses. The only way that a foreign company can compete is to provide affordably priced high-quality products and services.
CPTPP will then be beneficial to Malaysian consumers providing access to high quality affordable products and services to which Malaysian businesses can also learn and adopt.
“There’s no turning back now as any attempts to reverse this progressive policy will have a negative impact on foreign direct investors as it seems that Malaysia is a protective country and not too open to foreign trade and investment,” said Tee.
Fear is natural to all businesses, the ratification of the CPTPP by Malaysia is a recognition by the government in progressing its long-held affirmative policies, overcoming fear and to be one of confidence building in competing globally.
The Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCI), the longest serving Malaysian chamber in the forefront of championing the economic and industrial development of the nation since 1837, applauds the government and more importantly the Minister for International Trade and Industry to reform the competitiveness of our businesses by ratifying the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and to come into effect on 22nd November 2022.
MICCI is a chamber with a majority of its membership being multinational corporations, have globalised business in their DNA and thus would be primed to take Malaysian talents and local SMEs beyond with the CPTPP.
