NEW YORK – Malaysia is preparing to reap from a new “window of opportunity” posed by multinational companies that are “expanding” certain operations from China due to recently imposed trade restrictions impacting them there.
Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz today said two major firms related to the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector have confirmed plans to invest in Malaysia.
“Quite a number of companies that are involved at the front-end, and not just back-end of E&E operations, are ‘expanding’ (from China) to realign their supply chains,” he said after meeting some companies’ representative here today.
“Malaysia is seen as a friendly country. So we are benefitting from this,” he said to Malaysian editors and journalists who are in New York to cover the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) this week.
One of these companies is Alton Industry Ltd, whose headquarters is in Chicago. It has decided to set up a new plant in Johor with an investment commitment of RM500 million, Zafrul said.
Another company, whose identity is not disclosed, is planning to move its operations to Penang, he revealed.
Meanwhile, Top Line Furniture Corporation, a large furniture importer and wholesale distributor based in Chicago, expressed their intention to increase their sourcing value in Malaysia over the next few years to RM230 million per year.
The company has been sourcing home furniture from Malaysia since 2000 with total import approximately RM840 million, he added.
Zafrul is meeting prospective investors during his short stay here to accompany Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to the UNGA.
Incentives to commensurate with spillover benefits
Tomorrow, Anwar is scheduled to participate in a roundtable discussion with Fortune 500 companies and in a forum on investing in Malaysia organised by Bursa Malaysia.
It was reported yesterday that during both sessions, he will also engage in deliberations with a few potential American investors to Malaysia, including Boeing, Kimberly Clark, Philip Morris International, and Procter & Gamble.
Zafrul today explained that potential investors based here in the US expressed three pressing concerns – on availability of talent, renewable energy and incentives for their companies.
On the issue of ensuring the right talent, the companies want cooperation from higher education institutes in Malaysia to prepare graduating students to take on jobs in their industries.
“I am also looking at how to ensure we have talents in specific sectors that are important,” he said.
The companies also have targets to achieve net zero emissions, and thus want to know Malaysia’s plans to alleviate pollution, specifically in terms of having renewable energy.
On their demand for incentives, especially tax incentives, Zafrul stressed that any incentives should come with appropriate spillover benefits for Malaysia, such as in opening job opportunities for local workers and opportunities to local vendors.
The materials and parts needed by these companies must come from Malaysia, he added.
“We don’t want companies that do not have anything to offer for the people.” – The Vibes, September 20, 2023
