M'sia Can Be Distribution Hub For Imports Into Asean

She said countries like China could use Malaysia as a strategic gateway to Asean because Malaysia has a high capacity to import with the purchasing power parity almost twice the country's gross domestic product (GDP) per capita.

Rafidah said the Asean-China free trade agreement (FTA) also provided potential for increased trade between Asean and China as well as Malaysia and China.

"Besides that, Malaysia is an industrialising country, with a high proportion of young population which creates demand for a wide spectrum of both industrial and consumer products," she said at the opening of the Chinese Export Commodities Exhibition & Investment Conference (Malaysia) or CECEM 2006 here Thursday.

Rafidah said total trade between Malaysia and China from January to October 2006 further expanded by 18.5 percent to US$21.73 billion from US$18.3 billion in the corresponding period last year.

For the first 10 months this year, Malaysia's exports to China, had registered an increase of 26.3 percent to US$9.38 billion, compared with US$7.4 billion in the same period last year, she said.

Among the major exports to China were electric and electronic products, palm oil, chemicals and chemical products, crude rubber, and optical and scientific equipment.

From January to October 2006, the imports from China grew by 15.9 percent to US$12.6 billion compared with US$10.9 billion in the same period last year.

These involves imports of electric and electronic products, machinery, appliances and parts, chemicals and chemical products, textiles and clothings, and manufactures of metal.

Last year, China emerged as Malaysia's fourth largest trading partner and largest source of imports, with total imports from China increasing by 27 percent to US$13.17 billion from US$10.33 billion in 2004.

Touching on investments, Rafidah said a total of 84 manufacturing projects participated by Chinese companies had been approved from 2001 to October 2006 with the total investment amounting to US$174 million.

Out of these, 74 were new projects with investment totalling US$108 million while 10 others were expansion and diversification projects with investment totalling US$66 million, she said.

To further boost bilateral trade, Malaysia would continue to be active in showcasing Malaysian products and services in China in the years ahead, Rafidah said.

Among the market potential that both countries could tap into were consumer products market, and intermediate capital goods and capital goods markets, she said.

CECEM 2006, organised by China's Foreign Trade Centre, attracted about 180 enterprises from 16 provinces and cities in China and 90 entries from Malaysian and Asean companies.

Source: Bernama.com