Malaysia must continue to play its role as a ‘neutral’ country with a robust technology sector ecosystem to ensure it remains a top investment destination, says Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry.
He emphasised that Malaysia’s open economy fosters cooperative relationships with all countries. “Southeast Asia is neutral, with a strong demographic, a growing, stable, and peaceful economy. Malaysia and Singapore have long been involved in the semiconductor sector. Malaysia has been in this field for over 50 years, with a well-developed and nearly complete ecosystem,” he noted during the Astro Awani programme Agenda Awani, titled Tech War, Tesla and Investment Magnet, on Tuesday.
He highlighted that the increase in investment is also supported by recent data showing Malaysia approved RM83.7 billion in investments across various sectors in the first quarter, representing a 13 per cent increase from RM74.1 billion in the same period last year. “We anticipate the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) index to grow by 5.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2024. Specifically, the manufacturing sector is expected to rise by 4.7 per cent, driven by the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector, especially semiconductors,” he added.
Furthermore, Tengku Zafrul stated that Malaysia has 16 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) covering both multilateral and bilateral agreements, including the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). “We have various FTAs with multiple groups. For instance, BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) is not an economic bloc but a group discussing global south issues,” he said.
“We are also working with the United States (US) within the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). Recently, we announced a review to begin discussions with the European Union (EU) regarding the Malaysia-EU Free Trade Agreement (MEUFTA). In my view, nearly all our blocs are aligned, given Malaysia’s status as an open and smaller economy compared to major trading partners like the US and China,” Tengku Zafrul concluded.
