KUALA LUMPUR: There is sustained interest coming from US companies looking to invest in Malaysia amid trade tensions between the United States and China.
American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) CEO Datuk Siobhan M. Das said the chamber sees interest coming from sectors where traditional investments were attracting.
“I think the attractiveness over the last five years which we have seen grow exponentially is still going to continue. It is a question of what will land in Malaysia. So I think the US-China tensions again go back to providing opportunities.
“The amount of investments that have landed in Malaysia is significant. The US is probably the largest investor (in Malaysia) right now,” she told Bernama in an interview.
Siobhan was a guest on Bernama TV’s The Nation programme entitled “In Focus: Malaysia-US Trade Relations” hosted by Jessy Chahal on Wednesday.
Currently, more than 600 American companies have a presence in Malaysia.
Siobhan said that over the last five years, the sectors that had consistently attracted American investments were the ones of high value, high technology and sectors that required specialty and quality to come out of their investments, which Malaysia is perfectly placed to do.
“Malaysia is perfectly equipped to be able to deliver in that space. The sectors, including E&E (electrical and electronics) of which semiconductors is a part of, remain paramount. Building on that medical technology, you have seen a massive influx of medical technology companies that are here, aerospace, chemicals and of course ICT (information and communications technology) are growing as well,” she added.
Beyond that, Malaysia has a lot of opportunities for new industries such as critical minerals.
According to Malaysia’s trade performance report, trade with the US rose by 29.9% in 2024 to RM324.91 billion compared to 2023. Trade with the US accounted for 11.3% of Malaysia’s total trade, with exports to the US in 2024 reaching a new record high, surging 23.2% to RM198.65 billion.
Siobhan said AmCham’s strength came from its ability to gather the information from its members and be able to convey them to the government while also working in collaboration with the government.
Asked whether AmCham foresees any rollback or continuation of tariffs under future US administrations, she said that with negotiations and with the understanding that Malaysia is a good partner, there could be some break in the level of tariffs.
“These are very early days. We don’t know which direction they are going to go. And a lot of times the tariffs will not necessarily be direct, it’s not necessarily a direct negotiation. There are other factors in play. We will have to wait and see how the whole relationship develops,“ Siobhan said.
Earlier during the programme, she said ties between the US and Malaysia had been constantly resilient on the back of diverse economic relationships between both countries.
She noted that the Malaysian government right now was being extremely pragmatic, and it was taking the right approach in understanding what the US needs, and trying to formulate what is the offering for a business match.
“And that is very pragmatic, and I congratulate the government for doing that. But I think there are things that we could be doing ourselves.
“It is what we can do on the ground here to make ourselves more competitive, to actually understand what we have in Malaysia, and to make sure that we are focused on those high-value areas, so that we are bringing the right investments into the right sectors, lowering the attrition rate,“ Siobhan said.
