PENANG’S logistics sector continues to play a central role in sustaining the state’s manufacturing strength, particularly in the electronics and electrical industry, and remains critical to its position within the global high-tech supply chain, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said on Friday.
Speaking at the Penang Freight Forwarders and Logistics Association’s 45th anniversary gala dinner at St Giles The Wembley Hotel, Chow said logistics remains the lifeblood of Penang’s industrial ecosystem, supporting competitiveness and anchoring the state’s manufacturing base to global markets.
He noted that Penang International Airport currently handles about 70 per cent of Malaysia’s total air cargo volume, with roughly 70 per cent of that comprising finished and semi-finished semiconductor products.
As a result, global semiconductor demand has a direct and significant impact on freight volumes in the state.
Chow acknowledged that the association has forecast an overall contraction of about 15 per cent in air cargo this year, describing it as a temporary adjustment influenced by global demand cycles, uncertainties surrounding United States import tariffs and capacity constraints.
However, he cautioned against viewing the downturn as a setback.
Instead, he urged industry players to treat the period as an opportunity to strengthen resilience, expand into new markets, optimise routes, enhance freighter availability and address operational inefficiencies that drive up costs and delivery times.
Highlighting the increasingly competitive nature of logistics in the global economy, Chow said leading nations are those that integrate digital infrastructure, real-time visibility, artificial intelligence-driven decision-making and sustainable practices into their logistics systems.
Smart ports and next-generation logistics hubs, he added, are emerging as national growth engines that link manufacturing, trade and multimodal networks in cleaner and more resilient ways.
Penang, he stressed, must continue positioning itself at the forefront of this transition.
Despite near-term challenges, Chow pointed to encouraging performance figures. From January to April this year, the association handled 45,339 metric tonnes of air cargo, up from 37,230 metric tonnes in the same period last year.
This included 28,864 metric tonnes of exports and 16,475 metric tonnes of imports, signalling an industry ready to scale once global demand rebounds.
Chow also congratulated the association on its 45th anniversary, commending its long-standing contribution to strengthening Penang’s logistics ecosystem.
The event was attended by Federation of Malaysia Freight Forwarder president Datuk Tony Chia, Penang Port Commission general manager Datuk Dr Vijayaindiaran Viswalingam, Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers Penang chairman Datuk Seri Lee Teong Li and association president Jaishanker Thambiah. - December 13, 2025
