KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia recorded a RM200 million increase, or 1.25%, in domestic direct investment (DDI) into Malaysian halal parks last year, said Halal Development Corporation Bhd (HDC).
In a statement today, it said Malaysian halal parks has, to-date, attracted investments of RM16.1 billion since 2011, signalling that the local halal industry is still growing despite ongoing challenges.
“Of this, RM9.5 billion, or 59%, is foreign direct investment (FDI), while RM6.6 billion, or 41%, is DDI.
“A total of 295 companies are currently in operation at the 21 halal parks across Malaysia, wherein 42 companies, or 14.3%, are multinational corporations, while 253 companies, or 85.7%, are locally-owned.”
HDC said Malaysia had emerged highest in the annual Global Islamic Economy Indicator for 2020/21 for the eighth year in a row, when it came out tops in four out of six categories – halal food, Islamic finance, Muslim-friendly travel, and the pharmaceutical and cosmetics sectors.
“Malaysia also ranked second and fourth in the media and recreation, and modest fashion sectors, respectively, in the annual State of the Global Islamic Economy Report published by international strategy research and advisory firm DinarStandard.”
According to HDC, Singapore was Malaysia’s biggest importer of halal products last year, with a total export value of RM4.10 billion.
“The city-state relegated China’s RM3.44 billion to second spot, followed by the United States with RM1.74 billion, Thailand (RM1.48 billion) and Indonesia (RM1.34 billion).
“This was able to somewhat cushion the full economic impact from border closures, which saw Malaysian halal exports contracting approximately RM10 billion in total, down from RM40.2 billion in 2019, to a mere RM30.5 billion for the whole of last year.
“The drop in halal exports value also corresponded to the 19% reduction in the number of Malaysian halal exporters, from 1,876 in 2019 to 1,507 last year.”
In terms of sectorial contribution, halal food and beverages continued to be the main contributor to the halal economy at RM17.40 billion in total value, followed by halal ingredients (RM8.83 billion), cosmetics and personal care (RM2.67 billion), palm oil derivatives (RM0.89 billion), industrial chemicals (RM0.47 billion) and halal pharmaceuticals (RM0.30 billion).
HDC chief executive officer Hairol Ariffein Sahari said Malaysia’s annual halal exports were originally forecast at an estimated RM42 billion by 2020.
“However, last year was an exceptionally challenging year, with the volatility in global oil prices and the ongoing war on Covid-19 taking precedence.
“Despite these uncertainties, the local halal industry continued to show unbridled resilience, thanks largely to strong fundamentals.” – Bernama, March 23, 2021
.jpg)
