Highlights of the MITI Weekly Bulletin, Vol. 117 include: Analysis of Malaysia’s Performance in the World Bank Doing Business Report 2011 Malaysia’s ranking in the World Bank Doing Business Report 2011 moved up two ranks to 21st position from 23rd in 2010. The number of countries covered by the survey was 183 - the same as in the 2010 report. The 2011 Report noted the initiatives that Malaysia put in place in the past year to enhance its business environment. Malaysia improved in five out of the nine indicators and maintained its rankings in four indicators. AFTA Update : Thailand’s Legal Enactment to Abolish Quota for Tea, Coffee and Milk Thailand has eliminated the Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) on imports of tea, coffee and milk effective 16 August 2010. ASEAN Member States, including Malaysia can now export these products to Thailand without any quantitative limits and import duties. List of Authorised Food Additives in Europe - Updates on EU Directive 2008/84/EC The...

Highlights of the MITI Weekly Bulletin, Vol. 118 include: APEC Leaders See Progress in Achieving Bogor Goals Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) had undertaken an assessment on the realisation of its 2010 Bogor Goals’ target of free and open trade and investment in the Asia Pacific for specifically its industrialised member economies. Outcomes of the assessment were tabled at the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) in Yokohama, Japan, 13-14 November 2010. The assessment indicated that… Malaysia-Chile Free Trade Agreement The Malaysia-Chile Free Trade Agreement (MCFTA) was signed on 13 November 2010 in Yokohama, Japan. Chile will undertake full elimination of import duties for 6,900 tariff lines (90.2% of total tariff lines) from the date of entry into force of the Agreement. The Malaysian business community is encouraged to take full advantage of the opportunities offered under this FTA. The 1-Innocert Programme: 1-Innovation Certification for Enterprise...

Highlights of the MITI Weekly Bulletin, Vol. 119 include: MoU between Malaysia and the Republic of Korea on Origin Certification and Verification The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Government of Malaysia and the Republic of Korea on Governing Mutual Administrative Assistance and Cooperation in Origin Certification and Verification under the Agreement on Trade in Goods was signed on 15 November 2010. Malaysia-Korea will devise new strategies to double trade in the next few years. MIM-MPC Malaysian Management Capability Index 2010 The Malaysia Institute of Management - Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MIM-MPC) Malaysian Management Capability Index (MCI) 2010 Report was launched on 27 October 2010. The Study produced the overall index for Malaysian management capability and the index for the individual organisation’s management capability. Findings of the MCI 2010 Research Study suggest that Malaysians have fared well and are moving towards achieving...

The Malaysia-International Chinese Business Forum (MICBF), held from 1-3 December with the theme “Forging Connectivity, Sharing Prosperity”, attracted more than 700 local and foreign business leaders. The main objectives of MICBF were to: • promote Malaysia as the preferred destination for foreign investment; and • facilitate investment partnership in promoted activities and projects. MITI Minsiter officiated the forum and led a special dialogue session with participants from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. It must be noted that Malaysia’s trade with these four economies amounted to US$92.6 billion in 2009 , making up one third of the country’s total trade . Among the issues discussed include improving the implementation of  Malaysian foreign labour policy, visas for expatriates and foreign professionals and investment in Terengganu and East Malaysia. The outcome of the forum also suggested that the...

Showcase SDSI yang mula diperkenalkan pada tahun 2006 merupakan pameran tahunan terbesar yang menghimpunkan produk/perkhidmatan SDSI dari seluruh Malaysia dalam usaha untuk memasar dan mempromosikan keluaran SDSI di peringkat domestik dan global. Program ini dianjurkan di Pusat Dagangan Antarabangsa Melaka (MITC), Ayer Keroh, Melaka sejak tahun 2006 dengan kerjasama Kerajaan Negeri Melaka. Showcase SDSI pada tahun ini bertema “Dari Malaysia Ke Persada Dunia” akan berlangsung seperti butiran di bawah: Tarikh : 10 - 12 Disember 2010 Tempat : Melaka International Trade Centre (MITC), 75450 Melaka, Malaysia Waktu Showcase : 10.00 pagi - 10.00 malam Antara objektif SDSI adalah: • Membantu dan memudahkan pemasaran produk/perkhidmatan SDSI yang berkualiti; • Meningkatkan imej produk/perkhidmatan SDSI; • Memberi pendedahan kepada umum bahawa keluaran SDSI adalah berpotensi dan berkualiti; • Mewujudkan dan memperluaskan rantaian perniagaan ( networking ) di antara...

Highlights of the MITI Weekly Bulletin, Vol. 120 include: NKEA: Electrical & Electronics Industry The electrical and electronics (E&E) industry is a key driver of Malaysia’s industrial development and contributes significantly to GDP growth, export earnings, investment and employment. However, it faces significant challenges in maintaining growth in the face of competition from regional competitors such as China, Taiwan and Singapore. Through the NKEA, Malaysia’s E&E sector will be revitalised to increase GNI to RM90 billion by 2020 and provides an additional 157,000 jobs. SME Corp. Malaysia & IBM Unveil SME Toolkit Kiosk SME Corp. Malaysia and IBM unveiled the SME Toolkit Kiosk on 16 November 2010, which aims at enhancing business capabilities of local SMEs in Malaysia. The kiosk is housed at the One Referral Centre (ORC), SME Corp. Malaysia headquarters, where local entrepreneurs and SMEs can access and benefit from the toolkit’s upgraded business management platform....

Highlights of the MITI Weekly Bulletin, Vol.122 include: Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement Enters Fourth Round Of Negotiations The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) entered its fourth round of negotiations in Auckland, New Zealand from 5-10 December 2010. Nine countries - Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, United States and Viet Nam - are in negotiations to create what could be the precursor to the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP). TPP members agreed that the APEC Summit in November 2011 remains the target date for a substantive agreement in all areas of negotiations. Progress Made in the Third Malaysia-Turkey Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Negotiations Further progress was made in the Third Round of the Malaysia-Turkey FTA negotiations held from 30 November to 2 December 2010 in Ankara, Turkey. Negotiations on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures which set out the basic rules for food safety and animal and plant health standards were...

A plan is vital for the success of any venture - more so in the business world which presents new challenges every single day! Needless to say, productivity is important to increase your competitiveness and stay ahead of the game. Did you know about the E-Z Productivity Calculator? This tool, developed by the Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC), can compute Productivity and Labour Cost Competitiveness of your company and give you the Added Value automatically. Just be sure to have these documents handy before you start: financial Statement (1 year)   Balance Sheets (1 year)  Profit and Loss Statement (1 year) Total number of employees during the year - this includes paid part-time & full-time, working proprietors and unpaid family members You can watch a demo of the system first…………..   Use this online calculator to access your company’s productivity performance and let us have your feedback!   

This week’s MWB shares the success story of Noraini Cookies – a Malaysian brand that has gone global.Starting off as a traditional kuih supplier for a 5-star hotel in the 1980s, today, Noraini Cookies Worldwide Sdn. Bhd. produces a wide range of cookies from chocolate chips, cornflakes and raisins, oats and walnuts, ginger and almonds to jackfruit. It has two distinctive brand of cookies - the festival cookies “Noraini’s Cookies” and the all season cookies “Good Kiss”. So, what are some of the ingredients for their success? The founder, Pn. Hjh. Noraini Hj. Ahmad, attributes her achievements to strong family support and the three basic  principles she holds on to: negotiating skills, managing capital and marketing strategy. Heading the Research & Development unit herself, the founder is also a firm believer in continuous improvement and is in constant search for breakthrough ideas to improvise her recipes. The company is also committed in ensuring the quality of...