Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation

THURSDAY, AUGUST 10, 2017, KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) will spearheading the participation of 172 Malaysian companies in the 14th China ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) 2017 from 12 – 15 September 2017. The event will be held in the Nanning International Convention and Exhibition Centre, Guangxi Province, People’s Republic of China.

Occupying 179 booths, the participation will be Malaysia’s 14th participation. The Malaysian companies, who are Small and Medium Enterprises, will be showcasing Made-in-Malaysia products and services from a number of sectors namely Food and Beverages, Health and Wellness, Lifestyle and Services, among others.

According to MATRADE’s Deputy CEO, Dato’ Wan Latif Wan Musa, “MATRADE has always seen CAEXPO as an effective platform to promote Malaysia’s exports and based on the past records, the event has proven to be an effective avenue for Malaysian companies to expand their outreach in China.”

In 2016, CAEXPO generated total sales of RM329.6 million, a 54% increase as compared to RM214 million recorded in 2015. This year, MATRADE projects sales value of RM350 million to be attained. Dato’ Wan Latiff stressed that, even though the target is quite high, he is optimistic Malaysian companies will be able to achieve the target due to the strong demand from China.

“China has been our largest trading partner since 2009. It is imperative for us to keep up this momentum by continuing to leverage on effective trade events in China such as CAEXPO,” he said.

In 2016, Malaysia’s total trade with China was at RM240.91 billion as compared to RM230.89 billion recorded in 2015 - a growth of 4.4%. Malaysia’s exports to China were valued at RM98.56billion while imports were recorded at RM142.35billion. However, exports with China in the first half of 2017 has expanded by 41.2% to reach RM59.79 billion. Higher exports were registered for products like electrical and electronics, petroleum products, chemicals and chemical products, rubber as well as metalliferous ores and metal scrap.

In addition to bringing Malaysian companies to CAEXPO, MATRADE will be signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with state-owned China Post to mark a strategic collaboration. Through the MoU, China Post will be introducing an online Malaysia Pavilion on its eMarketplace platform called ule.com. Through this initiative, Malaysian products will be featured in all China Post stores in the Guangxi Province. China Post has 600,000 stores nationwide and 93 stores in Guangxi Province. The collaboration is set to further enhance the presence of Malaysian products on China’s eCommerce platforms.