Malaysian biz group sees new opportunities

A Malaysian business group in China sees new opportunities for cooperation with firms in China, the Southeast Asian nation's major trading partner, in booming areas such as the new-energy vehicle (NEV) sector, alongside traditional sectors like infrastructure investment, Loh Wee Keng, chairman of the Malaysian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China, told the Global Times on Thursday.

The remarks were made as Malaysia's King Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar pays a state visit to China from Thursday to Sunday, marking his first visit to a non-ASEAN country since assuming office as head of state.

The visit by the Malaysian leader will inject new impetus into bilateral cooperation, in which economic issues and trade have been important parts, industry insiders and experts said.

China has been Malaysia's No.1 trading partner for 15 consecutive years and is one of its major sources of foreign investment. Malaysia has long been China's second-largest ASEAN-country trading partner.

Loh said that against the backdrop of the meeting of the two countries' top leaders, "we hope that both sides can elevate investment to a new height."

In addition to infrastructure investment, new opportunities for cooperation are booming. For example, Chinese NEV brands such as BYD and Chery are selling well in Malaysia, and the market potential there is huge, according to media reports.

Loh said that the organization hopes that Chinese companies will bring their latest offerings on the NEV industry chain to Malaysia, where the green transformation is gaining momentum.

The chamberhead also sees possibilities for more cooperation including artificial intelligence and big data, areas where Malaysia is open for Chinese enterprises to invest.

Loh called on Malaysian companies to seize the opportunities presented by the high-level visit as well as the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia this year.

"Malaysian businesses should serve the Chinese market and foster their own development and growth," Loh said.

Commenting on the visit this week, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a press briefing on Wednesday that China stands ready to work with Malaysia to carry forward the traditional friendship, deepen the synergy of development strategies, and expand mutually beneficial cooperation through this visit, in order to enrich the China-Malaysia comprehensive strategic partnership and strive for new progress in building a China-Malaysia community with a shared future.

"China-Malaysia relations have been taking on a positive trend thanks to high-level interactions. The visit by King Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar will further boost political trust and propel the expansion of cooperation," Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times on Thursday, noting the two countries are expected to further align the Belt and Road Initiative with Malaysia's national development strategy.