RANKINGS have now become commonplace. Countries are being benchmarked based on the level of transparency and the integrity of their institutions. In the economic sphere, the competitiveness of countries is evaluated on an annual basis by a number of institutions. These rankings have played a role in shaping people’s perceptions about countries and institutions. They may not be entirely accurate, but many take heed of the assessments. And, even if they do not provide complete assessments, they do influence decision-making. Each year, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (Miti) monitors the results of three major international reports on countries’ competitiveness, namely the World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) 2010 by the Institute of Management Development (IMD), the Global Competitiveness Report (GCR) 2010-2011 by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Doing Business (DB) Report by the World Bank. Many parties may not agree with the criteria or the scores...

International Trade and Industry Minister, Y.B. Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed, will lead a trade and investment delegation to the United States covering Atlanta, Philadelphia and Washington DC from September 17 to 24, 2010 to bolster bilateral economic and trade relations. He will also attend the Global Services Summit 2010 in Washington DC where he will be among panellists for the Expanding Services Trade and Investment: A Vision for the Asia-Pacific forum. “This mission marks the government’s continuing efforts to draw more foreign investment from the US. We hope that through such programmes, we can attract more American investors and industry players into Malaysia and boost two-way trade relations,” Dato’ Sri Mustapa said. “This time around, we will focus on investments from high-technology sectors which have the potential to generate more job opportunities and at the same time create a higher-valued ’spin-off’ effect within the industry.”  

Asean Economic Community (AEC) will be established in January 2015. The establishment of the AEC will enable the 10 ASEAN member countries to work hand-in-hand in making the region a dynamic business destination. To date, 3 key agreements have been implemented to enhance free flow of goods, services and investment. ASEAN countries are working on opening up the services sector and remove barriers to allow for free flow of trade in services within the region. The article by the Secretary General of MITI, Y.Bhg. Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Mamat, sheds light on Realising ASEAN vision via AEC.

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...

The UNCTAD Global Investment Trends Monitor: Global And Regional FDI Trends in 2010 report records an impressive 409.7 % FDI growth in Malaysia - USD7 billion FDI inflow in 2010, compared with USD1.4 billion in 2009; which is also the  highest among the 153 economies surveyed by UNCTAD. The world FDI inflow in 2010 stood at USD 1.12 trillion. These figures are reflective of the increasing investor confidence in Malaysia and the successful implementation of the economic transformation and reform programmes, contained in the New Economic Model. Investments in the manufacturing sector also increased from RM32.6billion in 2009 to RM47.2 billion in 2010. It must also be noted that the local bourse hit the highest mark on 7 January 2011 at 1,572.21 points.     MITI has also established an Investment Committee, co-chaired by Y.B. Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed and  YB Senator Dato’ Seri Idris Jala, CEO ofPEMANDU, to monitor, address and resolve cross-cutting investment-related...

MITI Minister, YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed, in an article in the New Straits Times  today, states that Malaysia has gained investor confidence. This article is a follow-up to our recent posting on the UNCTAD Global Investment Trends Monitor 2010 report. “We have taken a big stride to regain our growth momentum by closing the gap between the pre-financial crisis investment and trade levels. Malaysia’s strong rebound reflects rising investor confidence in an economy backed by healthy fundamentals” said the Minister. This achievement is also attributed to several factors and initiatives undertaken by the Government like the:

• establishment of the Special Taskforce to Facilitate Business  (PEMUDAH)
  • instrumental in cutting red tapes across the public sector and implementing a host of initiatives to improve the business environment in the country.

 

• Government Transformation Programme
  • streamline bureaucracy and improve Government’s...

The Malaysia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (MICECA) will come into effect on 1 July 2011. The free trade agreement addresses issues related to the liberalisation of trade in goods, trade in services, investments and economic cooperation. It is Malaysia’s fourth bilateral FTA after Japan, Pakistan and New Zealand.The benefits provided by MICECA are in addition to those already made available under the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIG) which was implemented on 1 January 2010. Under MICECA, Malaysia and India will progressively reduce or eliminate tariffs on an agreed list of industrial and agricultural products between 1 July 2011 and 31 December 2019. Malaysian exporters will enjoy free duty market access for rubber products, chemical products and electrical equipment from 1 July 2011. Imports from India into Malaysia will enjoy zero or lower duties for live animals and meat, textile materials and manufactures of metal beginning 1 July 2011. For...

The US-ASEAN Business Council conducted its annual Senior Executives Business Mission to Malaysia from 19-21 July 2011 aimed at promoting stronger business-to-business linkages between Malaysian and US multinational companies (MNCs). The delegation comprised of 43 senior business executives representing 20 US MNCs and to date, it is the largest delegation to Malaysia. This visit demonstrated that there is a growing interest by US MNCs to invest in Malaysia. On 20 July 2011, the delegation met Dato’ Jacob Dungau Sagan, Deputy Minister (Industry) and several views on bilateral trade and economic issues were exchanged. Issues related to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) were also discussed. The Deputy Minister also took the opportunity to brief the delegation on Malaysia’s reform agenda, in particular the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) and Economic Transformation Programme (ETP). The US delegation applauded Malaysia’s approach to engage more private sectors in...

 

LANDING in Balikpapan after a 2-hour direct AirAsia flight from Kuala Lumpur makes you realise how close you are to some of Indonesia’s most bustling cities. My trip to Balikpapan was sparked off by a meeting I had some four months earlier with the city’s personable mayor, Bapak Rizal Effendi in Jakarta at a lunch for editors from Indonesia’s largest newspaper group, Jawa Pos. He convinced me that it is important to promote Malaysia in cities outside Jakarta. At the time I promised him that I’d visit his city the premier commercial hub in the booming natural resource province of East Kalimantan within the next four months. It wasn’t easy to arrange but with the Asean Economic Ministers’ Meeting set for Manado, I was able to pack in a quick trip to Pak Rizal’s home city. With a population of just over 600,000, Balikpapan is a thoroughly business-focused city framed by the Makassar Straits on one side and countless rolling hills on the other. There is an...

 

Media Statement by:

Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed Minister of International Trade and Industry   Strong FDI Performance for the First Nine Months of 2011  

1.   Malaysia’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for the first nine months of 2011 was recorded at RM26.4 billion compared with RM18.6 billion for the same period in 2010 indicating a 42 per cent growth. This is based on the latest figure released by the Department of Statistics, Malaysia (DOSM). For the record, total FDI for the whole of last year was RM29.3 billion, while in 2009, total FDI was RM5.0 billion.   2.   Based on the FDI flows for the first nine months, it is likely that this year’s total FDI will exceed last year’s figure.   3.   While the FDI inflows for Q1 and Q2 2011 were strong which stood at RM10.1 billion and RM11.07 billion respectively, the inflow of FDI in Q3 moderated to RM5.17 billion. This is partly due to weaker external economic conditions, especially in the Euro Zone and the...