With the date finally arriving, Minister of International Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul is in Washington to address the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the United States on Malaysia, where he reiterated Malaysia’s commitment to finding a middle ground on the tariff situation.
Tengku Zafrul met with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick to discuss the economic relationship between the two countries, ahead of the 90-day pause in the tariffs. During their dialogue, the Minister also expressed Malaysia’s willingness to reduce the trade deficit and enhance technological collaboration.
Malaysia is also ready to work with the US to achieve mutually agreeable solutions regarding the tariffs initiated by the Trump administration. In this aspect, four key areas have been identified for negotiation:
- Reducing the trade deficit
- Addressing non-tariff barriers
- Strengthening technological safeguards and security
- Exploring a potential bilateral trade agreement
Notably, Malaysia has also publicly affirmed that it will not retaliate against the US, instead focusing on collaboration to address the concerns raised by the Trump administration.
“These initial meetings with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer are a positive step,” said Tengku Zafrul. “We will maintain this momentum by urgently following up on the key issues discussed within this 90-day period. Malaysia emphasises that all lines of communication remain open, and we are committed to finding an amicable resolution to this reciprocal tariff matter.”
While outcomes of the discussion are still being ironed out, the Minister did hint that they have been positive thus far.
