KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia remains a top destination for European and US investors even though the country has joined BRICS as a partner country.
The Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry (MITI), in a written response published on the parliament’s website on Tuesday, informed that as of December 2024, a total of 56 potential projects with an investment commitment of nearly RM20 billion have been identified and are set to be implemented in the country.
It stated that large international companies such as Intel, Amazon Web Services, Oracle, Google, and Plexus continued to commit to investing or increasing their investments in Malaysia, making the country one of the primary destinations for over 600 US companies.
“Although Malaysia has now joined BRICS as a partner country on Jan 1, 2025, it continues to maintain strong relations with its traditional trade partners. The evolving relationship with the US and Europe ensures that Malaysia can capitalise on economic opportunities from both sides without neglecting its involvement in the growing BRICS bloc,” said the ministry in response to a question from Datuk Abdul Khalib Abdullah (PN-Rompin).
Abdul Khalib wanted to know the impact of foreign countries such as Europe and the United States on the country’s investment and trade sectors if Malaysia becomes a BRICS member.
According to the ministry, Malaysia’s involvement in BRICS also opens up broader market access, especially with countries that do not have free trade agreements with Malaysia, such as Russia, Brazil, South Africa, and India.
“This move has the potential to provide new opportunities in the trade and investment sectors while strengthening Malaysia’s position as a dynamic economy globally. Additionally, the country’s trade performance also shows impressive growth,“ explained MITI.
In 2024, the total trade with the United States recorded RM325 billion, an increase of 30 per cent compared to RM250 billion in 2023, while trade between Malaysia and European countries reached RM263 billion, an increase of four per cent compared to the previous year.
MITI said the BRICS economic bloc, which recorded nearly US$30 trillion in 2024, provides Malaysia with an opportunity to further strengthen its strategic position in international trade. “With this background, Malaysia aims to continue improving its competitiveness and empowering the national economy through the MADANI Economic Framework, in line with the inclusive social and economic development plan,“ it added.
BRICS is a bloc that collectively contributes one-fifth to global trade, consisting of nine member countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Ethiopia, Iran, and Egypt.
