Petaling Jaya: Malaysian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Malaysian Manufacturing Federation chairman Tan Sri Saw Thian Lai suggested Malaysia could become a gateway for Chinese companies to export to the European Union and the United States.
Soh said China could take advantage of Malaysia’s strategic location, established trade networks and multilingual talent pool.
“Why not China work with Malaysian small and medium-sized enterprises and use Malaysia as a base so that Malaysia can export to the European Union, and also export to the United States using Malaysia as a production centre, a centre of excellence,” he said at the Malaysia-China (Guangxi) Business Dialogue today.
Mr Soh said there were many opportunities between Malaysian entrepreneurs and the business community and China.
“You know, China is very big. China’s area is close to 10 million square kilometres. China’s exports are (worth) about US$3.3 trillion. Not billions, but trillions of dollars. And China’s imports are huge too, at US$2.56 trillion (RM12 trillion),” he said.
Soh also noted that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has visited China three times so far and highlighted the close ties between the Chinese and Malaysian leaders.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China, and Chinese Premier Li Qiang is also due to visit Malaysia in the coming weeks, Soh said.
“So we are sure to see increased activity between the two countries,” he added.
China has been Malaysia’s largest trading partner for the past 15 years, and Mr Soh believes this will continue to be the case.
“China is already leading the world not only in technology but also in AI and business. Malaysia is a small country so we need to learn from China,” he said.
Mr Soh emphasised the importance of joint ventures between Malaysian SMEs and Chinese companies, especially in areas such as IR4.0 technologies and advanced manufacturing processes.
He pointed to China’s expertise in areas such as electronics and electrical (E&E), integrated circuit (IC) design, solar energy, renewable energy, and electric vehicles (EVs).
“In our city, we see that more than 60 per cent of EV vehicles are made in China. We hope that Malaysian companies can venture into the EV battery business in Malaysia through joint ventures with China,” he added.
He said Malaysia’s new industrial master plan, NIMP 2030, focuses on sustainability and achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
“In terms of sustainability, ESG, China will be surprised. China is moving very fast. Many organisations have already started to comply with this ESG, while the Malaysian side is still catching up. I hope that many Chinese companies can work with Malaysian SMEs under ESG,” he said.
Finally, Soh encouraged Malaysian businessmen to look beyond Malaysia to the global market, particularly China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, as a potential area for investment. “The global market is your market. Don’t just stop at Malaysia,” Soh urged them.
