KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s globalised mindset and open trade policies make it attractive despite the challenges posed by US tariffs, said SME Association of Malaysia national president Chin Chee Seong.
He said Malaysia is particularly attractive to Chinese companies because it aligns with China’s need to diversify its trade partnerships in the face of ongoing US-China trade tensions.
“Malaysia embraces a free trade policy, making it easy for everyone to enter. On the manufacturing side, we’re seeing better engagement from the Chinese. They’ve discovered that the best place for them in Southeast Asia is Malaysia. In fact, Kuala Lumpur, and even other smaller cities, can become hubs for them,” he told reporters at the Malaysian SME Resilience and Growth 2025 Conference today.
Chin also said Malaysian SMEs could benefit from expanding into markets such as BRICS but more government support is needed to help them. “The government needs to help us to open up other markets, like BRICS and allocate more funds for promotion. It’s a long journey to enter these countries.”
He shared that some companies with several hundred staff have reduced their workforce by almost 30%. “They cut back and shifted their sales focus to markets like Japan, Taiwan, the Asia-Pacific, and even Indonesia. Because of that they’re still surviving.”
Looking ahead, Chin said the next six months will be challenging for Malaysian SMEs due to high operating costs, inflation, multi-tier levies, e-invoicing, and electricity tariff hikes.
“Growth for SMEs is expected to be in the single digits this year. If you’re talking about GDP growth, it’s not growing.”
Chin highlighted fierce competition, particularly from low-cost alternatives in China and India’s IT services industry.
“Exports have been slow for many years, and the cost of living has increased. People don’t have money. When people don’t have money, they spend less. They might still buy, but not as much as before. So, the rising costs affect consumer spending, which in turn, affects SMEs.”
