KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is seeking stronger Asean-European Union cooperation in light of “once-in-a-generation” US tariffs, said Deputy Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Liew Chin Tong.
He met Italy’s Deputy Enterprises Minister and Made in Italy Minister Valentino Valentini, at the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry today.
“We would like to see stronger collaboration between Malaysia and Italy. And we also like to see a lot more collaboration between Asean and the EU,” he told reporters at the launch of Generali Malaysia’s new headquarters today.
Liew said strengthening economic ties between Malaysia and Italy, and between Asean and the EU, is very important.
Liew said meeting the Italy deputy minister was important, particularly in the current situation in which they are dealing with a “once-in-a-generation” challenge from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
On recent reports alleging that Chinese goods are being labelled as Malaysian to evade US tariffs, Liew said Malaysia has consistently maintained a firm stance against such practices. “We have always maintained that pass-through should not be allowed. We emphasise value-adding, we want to see value-added activities take place in Malaysia and export based on that.”
He added that the Malaysian government is safeguarding Malaysia’s trade reputation.
“If you Google my name you’ll see that I’ve always maintained this view that there shouldn’t be passing through.”
According to a Bloomberg report, some China-based freight brokers are allegedly rerouting products through Malaysia and falsely declaring them as Malaysian-made to exploit lower tariff rates.
One broker told Bloomberg that “most clients are opting to route Chinese merchandise through Malaysia and say it was made there” to avoid US tariffs as high as 145%.
Malaysia’s tariff rate stands at 24%, making it an attractive cover for goods that actually originate in China.
According to five merchants interviewed by Bloomberg, these offers have surged since Trump imposed steep tariffs on Chinese imports.
The brokers typically reach out on social media, offering to help reduce costs by faking shipment values or origins.
“We can provide the solution to help you save your cost,” read one such message from a logistics firm offering to serve as an importer and declare a lower value for a shipment.
Today, Generali Malaysia opened Menara Generali on Jalan Sultan Ismail in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, uniting its general and life insurance operations under one roof, enhancing collaboration and operational efficiency.
The new headquarters brings together over 1,000 employees from four different locations, namely Wisma Goldhill, Wisma Boustead, Chulan Tower and Menara Multi-Purpose, to serve the needs of more than 9,000 agents and partners and two million customers nationwide.
