Perbadanan Pembangunan Perdagangan Luar Malaysia

Tuesday, March 1, 2016, Kuala Lumpur: Participants of Mid-Tier Companies Development Programme’s (MTCDP) congregated at Menara MATRADE today for a closing ceremony marking their programme’s completion in the Wave 2 of MTCDP. The event was hosted by Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE).

The ceremony saw 57 Mid-Tier Companies (MTCs) presented with certificates by Minister of International Trade and Industry YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed. The companies that completed the programme’s Wave 2 were from various sectors including chemicals, electrical & electronics, food & beverages, automotive and oil & gas. The programme also included participation of Bumiputera companies, women-owned companies and Sabah and Sarawak companies.

The MTCDP was established in 2014 as one of the Government’s high impact initiatives with an aspiration to accelerate the growth of Malaysian Mid-Tier Companies (MTCs) in the global forefront, in line with the aspirations of 2020. The programme is a 9-month acceleration programme aimed at supporting Malaysia’s economy, boost global opportunities for local companies and heighten brand visibility of Malaysian products and services.

The programme focuses on driving MTCs’ exports growth and impactful outcome in new or existing markets through tailored market immersions and customised business matching with potential foreign business partners, distributors and customers. Complementing these are CEO networking and leadership forum as well as export best practices working sessions with industry or regional market experts. Companies are also provided access to market intelligence to facilitate their business decisions.

Moving forward, the MTCs in the programme will be absorbed into with the Ramp-Up programme, a two-year programme for MTCs targeted at sustaining the growth momentum of the MTCs, further deepen their linkages in the international markets and help them to grow to become future Malaysia Multi-National Companies (MNCs).

Currently, there are only 9,900 Mid-Tier Companies in Malaysia, compared to 662,939 Small and Medium Enterprises. The MTCs make up about 1 per cent of all establishments in Malaysia. However, they contribute 30 per cent to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and represent 22 per cent of the workforce. These figures showed the significant contribution of the MTCs to the Malaysian economy.

MTCDP, developed by MATRADE, was designed for exporting Malaysian companies with annual revenues between RM50 million to RM500 million for manufacturing companies and RM20 million to RM500 million for services companies.

The high-impact programme is implemented in 8 waves over eight years until 2021. MATRADE is currently actively recruiting for Wave 3 of the MTCDP. Targeting 50 companies, Wave 3 of MTCDP is scheduled to kick start by end of March 2016. Interested companies can email to Alamat emel ini dilindungi dari Spambot. Anda perlu hidupkan JavaScript untuk melihatnya. for more information on the MTCDP and the Ramp-Up programme.

Thursday, February 25th, 2016, Putrajaya: The National Export Council (NEC) has convened again for the fourth time to deliberate on strategies and measures to boost exports. Last year, exports increased by 1.9% to RM779.9 billion compared to 2014. Trade balance in 2015 improved by 14.3% to RM94.3 billion, which marked the 18th consecutive years of trade surplus since 2008. This achievement was quite encouraging considering the challenging global economy such as the low commodity prices, currency fluctuation and economic slowdown in China.

Malaysia’s current account also remained positive at RM34.03 billion, albeit at a lower level than 2014. The combination of positive trade balance and positive current account balance reflects Malaysian economy’s strong fundamentals.

Export assumes an important role in the country’s economy as it represents 67.4% of Malaysia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). As Malaysia makes a stride in moving towards a developed nation status, export contribution becomes even more important.

At its first meeting for the year today, the Council endorsed the following strategies to drive exports:

1. Deepening market access through the adoption of e-commerce via the MATRADE’s eTRADE Programme especially for SMEs. The programme is an initiative under the Digital Malaysia coordinated by MDeC. It offers a cost-effective export vehicle for SMEs by utilising e-marketplaces such as Alibaba.com, eBay, amazon.com, Trade India, TMall.com and JD.com. The Government aims to increase SMEs’ export contribution to 23% by 2020 from the current 19%.

2. Pushing for more Malaysian companies to be export champions in the regional and global markets, through the Mid-Tier Companies Development Programme. The aim is to create more Multi-National Companies (MNCs) from Malaysia.

3. Intensifying the promotion to brand Malaysia through a Private-Public Partnership initiative - the 1Malaysia Promotion Programme. This programme aims to optimise the benefits of strategic collaboration between the government ministries, agencies, government-linked companies and the private sector.

4. Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) as the national export promotion agency will continue to diversify export markets to the 2nd and 3rd tier cities in China, Greenfield markets in ASEAN, the Trans Pacific Partnership countries as well as emerging markets such as Africa and Central Asia. This strategy will broaden export opportunities for Malaysian companies, particularly SMEs.

5. A strategic plan to boost the production of agricultural products and enhance its exports through revitalisation of Permanent Food Production Area and Integrated Zone for Aquaculture. The plan is targeted at improving the balance of trade for agro-food products.

6. Domestic tourism promotion will also be intensified through introduction of integrated domestic holiday packages. The initiatives are intended to encourage more Malaysians to travel within the country to reduce the outflow of tourism spending and stimulate domestic economic activities.

Recently, the Prime Minister highlighted measures to increase export during the 2016 budget recalibration announcement. Among others, it includes the implementation of eVisa for travellers from selected countries. For example, tourists from China no longer require a visa or Visa-Free to enter Malaysia from 1 March until 25 December 2016.

The NEC was set up in December 2014 to steer export growth. Chaired by the Prime Minister, it comprises a total of 18 members, 11 from the public sector and 7 from the private sector.

Friday, 26th February, 2016, Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) in collaboration with Malaysian-African Professional & Entrepreneur Association (MAPE) organised a sharing and networking session to enhance partnership with Africa at Menara MATRADE today.

The event, attended by the Minister of International Trade and Industry YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed is part of MATRADE’s continuous efforts to encourage and facilitate Malaysian companies establish greater networks with potential business partners from Africa.

According to chief executive officer of MATRADE, “There is a large number of Malaysians in the African countries and we have a lot of African students studying in various Malaysian institutions of higher learning. This indicates a growing people-to-people connectivity between Malaysia and Africa. Leveraging on this, we may be able to create stronger foundation to build the economic relationship between the two countries.”

At the networking session, MATRADE as Malaysia’s export promotion agency urges African entrepreneurs and corporations to view Malaysia as their "gateway" to the huge ASEAN markets and across the Asia-Pacific region as well. “Malaysia offers many advantages to those seeking to do business in this part of the world. Malaysia is strategically located in Asia, implements pro-business government policies and has great connectivity,” said Dato’ Dzulkifli.

At the event, YB Dato’ Sri Mustapa Mohamed informed the attendees of the establishment of MAPE. The establishment of MAPE marked another milestone in fostering closer business ties between the two nations. MAPE was established on 17 September 2015 to benefit from the strategic alliance between Malaysia and Africa and the association also aspires to serve as a point of contact to bring together Malaysian and African business entrepreneurs and professionals.

Three Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) were also signed at the event, marking a strategic collaboration between MAPE, Hi Tech Global Sdn Bhd, Powerus Sdn Bhd and Kindia Resources Sarl. These MoUs are aimed at strengthening the business alliances and partnership between the companies.

One of the highlights of the event was a success story sharing-session by two Malaysian companies that have successfully ventured into Africa. The companies were KLCC Projeks Services Sdn Bhd and Probase Manufacturing Sdn Bhd. The two companies shared their unique experiences and winning strategies in penetrating the African market.

Malaysia’s trade with Africa has expanded from RM12.02 billion in 2006 to RM30.1 billion in 2015, registering an average annual growth rate of 10.6 per cent. South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria and Angola were Malaysia’s top trading partners and export destinations. Main products exported to Africa include palm oil and palm oil based products, petroleum products, chemicals & chemical products, processed food and machinery, appliances & parts. Malaysia main imports from Africa were LNG, petroleum products, crude petroleum, manufactures of metal, metalliferous ores and metal scrap.

Apart from trade in goods, Malaysian companies have also exported their services to Africa, among which include construction and professional services, energy and power generation, environment management services, oil and gas, ICT services and education.

In an effort to build bridges between Malaysia and Africa, MATRADE will continue to organise sharing and networking sessions such as this as a method to introduce Malaysian companies with potential foreign buyers. Moving forward, MATRADE will be organising at least 150 programmes in 2016 comprising export promotion activities and exporters’ development programmes. Malaysian companies are encouraged to register as a MATRADE member to enjoy the latest updates on export opportunities around the world and export-related training programmes.

Thursday, 25th February, 2016, Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) in collaboration with the Algerian Embassy in Malaysia organised a Trade Talk on “Malaysia-Algeria Together for Win-Win Partnership” at Menara MATRADE today.

The speakers at the event who were from the National Agency of Investment Development (ANDI) and Algerian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CACI) shared insights on the current business environment in Algeria, trade and investment opportunities and the roles of the private sector in promoting economic and commercial relations between Algeria and Malaysia.

The other highlight of the event was an experience sharing session on doing business with Algeria by Datuk Suhaidi Sulaiman, Chairman of the Malaysia–Algeria Business Council. Also part of the event was a business networking session between Malaysian companies and 21 members of business delegation from Algeria.

The talk was part of the Government’s initiatives aimed at deepening market entry and widening export share between Malaysia and Africa. Trade and economic relations play an important role in nurturing good relations between countries. As Malaysia progresses, the nation placed great emphasis on knowledge and expertise sharing with respective partners, especially those from the emerging markets like Algeria.

Malaysia views Algeria as an important trading partner in Northern Africa. Malaysia's bilateral trade with Algeria doubled to RM1.19 billion (US$305.7 million) in the last five years (from 2011 – 2015). Algeria was Malaysia’s second largest trading partner, exports destination and imports source in Northern Africa, after Egypt

Trade was in Algeria’s favor due to Malaysia’s large imports of LNG from Algeria. In 2015, imports of LNG constituted 99.6 per cent of Malaysia’s total imports from Algeria. However, due to lower prices of LNG in 2015, Malaysia’s imports from Algeria decreased substantially by 26.9 per cent to RM 742.7 million (USD189.8 million) compared to 2014.

Malaysia exported a wide range of products to Algeria. The main exports were Palm Oil & Palm-Based Products, Furniture, Rubber Products and Dairy Products, which collectively accounted for 70 per cent of total exports to Algeria. Apart from that, Malaysia companies have also undertaken sea water desalination projects and oil and gas services in Algeria.

Among the services that Malaysian companies have exported to Africa are construction and professional services, energy and power generation, environment management services, oil and gas, ICT services, consultancy, establishment and management of oil plantation and education.

According to MATRADE’s Chief Executive Officer, Dato’ Dzulkifli Mahmud, “Malaysian services providers have the expertise, capability and capacity to supply a wide range of services to overseas markets and they should leverage on MATRADE to start connecting with potential buyers from Algeria.”

The event was considered timely as it updated Malaysian players with the prospects in the Algerian market and provided other useful information for Malaysian companies wishing to do business in Algeria.

“The current bilateral trade scenario clearly shows there is an urgent need to further improve our trade with Algeria. We would like to encourage more co-operations and collaborations between the Algerian and Malaysian business communities, in order to maximise the opportunities in both countries,” Dato’ Dzulkifli said.

“The two-way trade and cross border investments between both countries could be further enhanced by organising more exchange of visits between the two countries and organising business and investment-related programmes like today’s briefing” Dato’ Dzulkifli added.

MATRADE encourages Malaysian companies to leverage on MATRADE’s 46 international offices and companies that are keen to explore the Algerian market can contact MATRADE’s Jeddah and Cairo office by emailing to Alamat emel ini dilindungi dari Spambot. Anda perlu hidupkan JavaScript untuk melihatnya..