1. I welcome the announcement made by YAB PM on the proactive economic measures. The decision to adopt these measures is a reflection of the government’s commitment to assist and facilitate Malaysian businesses in these challenging economic times.

2. The Working Capital Guarantee Scheme of RM2 billion for SMEs is in addition to the RM5 billion Services Sector Guarantee Scheme announced on 1 April this year.  

3. The additional RM2 billion is for sectors especially manufacturing. This will assist viable SMEs to gain access to finance and maintain their operations under current economic constraints. I have been having many engagements with SMEs and one of the issues that they face is on financing. This incentive will help sustain the momentum in business.

4. Through the 5-30% import duty exemption given to 90 items in the manufacturing sector, manufacturers will be able to reduce the cost of production. These products include spare-parts, consumables and testing equipment which are not produced locally. The cost of doing business has gone up and this exemption will help alleviate the issues faced.

5. Under the 10th Malaysia Plan, Domestic Investment Strategic Fund (DISF) was launched by YAB Prime Minister on 3 July 2012 with an allocation of RM1 billion to attract domestic investment, encourage research & development, provide training in new and emerging technologies, and to accelerate Malaysian industries into the global supply chain.

6. As at 31 August 2015, 181 investment projects have been approved for DISF with grants totaling RM747.5 million. The beneficiaries of this scheme were from various industries and sectors including Electrical & Electronics, machinery, transport, services, chemical, oil & gas and food industries.

7. This additional DISF fund is expected to assist MIDA to drive domestic investment in the country and to accelerate the transition of domestic companies into industries which are high value-added, high technology, knowledge-intensive and innovation-based.

8. The additional RM9 million promotional fund will assist MIDA to intensify its investment promotion initiatives to Singapore, Europe, Japan, Korea, Middle East, China and the United States. These efforts will focus on targeted sectors including IC design, semiconductor, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, aerospace, healthcare, halal, petrochemicals (specialty chemicals & chemical derivatives), advanced chemicals / materials & rubber based products / specialised rubber, renewable energy, energy efficiency and waste management.

9. Malaysia has one of the most resilient and sound economic fundamentals in the region. It is hoped that with this shot in the arm, our domestic industry will be able to sustain economic growth.

Ministry of International Trade and Industry
Malaysia
14 September 2015