The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a trade and investment liberalization initiative involving nine countries - Australia; Brunei; Chile; Malaysia; New Zealand; Peru; Singapore; United States; and Viet Nam. The aim of the TPP is the creation of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) that will enhance trade and investment among the TPP partner countries and set new standards in the conduct of global trade.   To date, nine rounds of negotiations have been held. On November 11, 2011 during the APEC Summit in Honolulu, TPP Leaders were presented with the broad outline of a draft agreement which highlights the shared aspirations and ambitions of the nine countries involved. This was achieved despite the complexity of the issues discussed and the different developmental status of the negotiating partners.   TPP members are targeting to conclude negotiations in 2012, with July 2012 as an important milestone to agree on substantially all areas.  The Intersessional meeting scheduled from 5 –...

The international economic community may have been skeptical of ASEAN’s initiative to form a dynamic regional grouping. This is now changing. Today, world leaders, business and political, don’t need to be persuaded to be at ASEAN events such as the recent ASEAN Summit in Bali. Indeed, during the high-profile meeting, Denpasar’s Ngurah Rai airport was crammed with an impressive array of government and private jets, including the iconic Air Force One.   Unlike the European Union, ASEAN’s best years are ahead of it. Businessmen and political leaders are attracted by our joint commitment to forge an integrated market through the Asean Economic Community (AEC) by 2015 - bringing together a market of over 600 million consumers.   Malaysia, which is at the heart of ASEAN, has been at the forefront in championing this initiative. Indeed, we need to be realistic as a nation. With a population of 28 million (growing at 2%...

 

What are your thoughts on improving Malaysia’s trade position vis-a-vis major trade partners at a time when trade is more volatile? Bulbir Singh, Seremban Make it “Easier, Faster and Cheaper” to do business in Malaysia. That’s the role of the Government trade facilitiation both within the country and across borders. It’s about reducing and eliminating bureaucratic hurdles and simplifying procedures. Across borders, it’s about working with our trade partners to reduce and eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers. We do this bilaterally (through our Free Trade Agreements), regionally (through our participation in Asean, and Apec) as well as multilaterally through the World Trade Organisation. Expanding Malaysia’s share of global trade is Miti’s raison d’etre. Given the uncertainty and the challenging trading environment, we have to work harder. But Miti cannot do this alone. Private sector involvement is vital to the initiatives taken to increase...

 

Geneva, December 14 - YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed, Minister of International Trade and Industry, met with His Excellency Mohamed Al Khatiri, Deputy Minister of Commerce and Industry of Saudi Arabia, in Geneva at the sidelines of the World Trade Organisation  meeting.   At the discussion, both leaders agreed to take more active measures to strengthen trade and investment relations between the two countries.   In 2010, Malaysia’s total trade with Saudi Arabia increased by 38% to US$2,896 million from US$1,923 million in 2009. From January to October this year, total trade between the two countries reached US$3,454 million compared to US$2,205.44 million in the corresponding period in 2010.   At the bilateral meeting, YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa suggested that the Malaysia-Saudi Business Council organize more familiarization programmes for officials and businessmen from the two countries.  Dr Khatiri said that there are many opportunities for Malaysian companies to do...

Overview of the Global Economic Scenario   ·    We are meeting at a time when the world economy is facing unprecedented challenges.   ·    Trade has grown more slowly than expected in recent months. World trade growth forecast for 2011 has been revised to 5.8%, down from an earlier estimate of 6.5%.   ·    In light of this challenging time, the greatest mistake countries can make is to look inwards and slide towards protectionism. There has been an increase in new trade restrictions. We hope that these measures are temporary in nature and that Governments demonstrate responsibility and commitment in dismantling them and discontinuing this negative trend.   ·    As a trade dependent country, Malaysia too is not immune to the negative impact of the economic and financial crisis. However, we believe that a conducive, facilitative, business and regulatory environment are critical factors that would help steer the...

THE services sector is overtaking manufacturing as the main contributor to economic growth. This will have vast implications on where people are going to find work and what skills they will need to get employed.  The government’s growth target is very clear: To become a developed nation by 2020. Using a World Bank definition, that means having a per capita income of RM49,500 (US$15,000) by the end of the decade. The per capita income level in 2010 was RM23,100 (US$7,000).This is an ambitious target and requires gross domestic product (GDP) growth of at least 7 per cent per year.  Historically, the country’s growth had been led by manufacturing. But when the government reviewed its economic policy last year, it realised that this may not be the case for much longer.  For two reasons. In developed economies, the services sector is usually the biggest contributor to economic output.  Last year,...

Kuala Lumpur, 20 January 2012 - World leaders will once again be brought together under the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting (WEF) 2012 themed “The Great Transformation: Shaping New Models”, where focus will be on defining the future direction for global economic growth, gathering the support of stakeholders and driving the motion towards realising the future vision. Minister of International Trade and Industry Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed will be participating in this Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland scheduled from 25 to 29 January 2012.   At the WEF Annual Meeting, Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed will be participating as discussion leader, special guest, and contributor respectively in a number of public, private and industry partnership sessions. These include sessions on: ‘Is This Truly the Asian Century?’, ‘Defining the Imperatives for 2012’, and ‘Manufacturing for Growth’.   In addition to these WEF scheduled sessions, Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed will...

Davos, 26 Jan - Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed, Menteri Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri menjadi hos dialog pagi Malaysia kepada 20 ahli korporat, pemimpin kerajaan dan media yang telah diadakan di samping mesyuarat Forum Ekonomi Dunia (WEF) 2012 di Davos. Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar, Pengarah Urusan Khazanah Nasional turut menyampaikan ucapan semasa dialog tersebut. Dalam ucapannya, Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed menekankan mengenai daya tarikan Malaysia sebagai destinasi pelaburan utama kepada pelabur asing, khususnya bagi syarikat-syarikat berteknologi tinggi dan berasaskan pengetahuan. Beliau juga menyatakan bahawa persekitaran perniagaan yang kondusif di Malaysia telah melahirkan banyak syarikat berdaya saing di peringkat global seperti Petronas, Air Asia, Axiata, Maybank, CIMB dan Integrated Healthcare Berhad. Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed turut menerangkan mengenai transformasi yang sedang dilalui Malaysia yang akan menjadikan negara ini lebih terbuka untuk...

By Datuk Mustapa Mohamed…

LAST year, Malaysia’s approved investments continued on a sharp recovery trend with total approved investments in the manufacturing sector recording a value of RM56.1bil compared with RM47.2bil in 2010. Penang, Selangor, Sarawak and Johor topped the table with RM9.1bil, RM8.7bil, RM8.5bil and RM6.6bil, respectively. Penang has consistently been among the top investment destinations over the last four decades.The island state is a manifestation of the success of Malaysia’s evolution from a primary-based to a highly industrialised economy. The success of the transition of the Malaysian economy is due, in no small measure, to the development and industrial plans introduced by the Federal Government since Independence, especially after 1970.A major thrust of these plans was to promote the growth of private investments, both local and foreign. These plans combined with a politically stable environment, effective policy and implementation framework,...

The First Ever Initiative to Provide a Platform to Promote Business Partnerships Among IDB Member Countries. Malaysia Partners with Islamic Development Bank Group to hold an Investment Forum in May 2012

The Malaysian Minister of International Trade and Industry Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed stated today that Malaysia, in partnership with the Islamic Development Bank Group, will organize a Malaysia-IDB Group Investment Forum 2012 during the period from 9-11 May 2012 in Kuala Lumpur. Speaking to a press gathering at the IDB group Regional Office, the Minister said that the Investment Forum will provide investors and entrepreneurs from IDB member countries a platform to meet and explore cross-border business prospects and partnerships. The Prime Minister of Malaysia Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak is scheduled to inaugurate the Forum and deliver his keynote address, and launch the Investment Forum at the opening ceremony on May 10. The Prime Minister will also launch...