MATRADE Joins Hands with The Private Sector to Grow Local Automotive SMEs Globally
THURSDAY, 22 AUGUST 2019, KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) joined forces with the private sector to boost the awareness on global opportunities for Malaysian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the automotive sector by organising a high-powered seminar titled “The Future of Malaysia’s Automotive Sector and Its Opportunities Worldwideâ€.
The seminar was organised with Messe Worldwide Sdn Bhd with the participation of eBay and DHL as well as Malaysia Automotive, Robotics and IoT Institute (Marii) that represented the public sector. Apart from sharing insights on the sector’s key segments and the high-value markets for SMEs, the seminar also highlighted the future of Malaysia’s automotive sector and strategies to export via e-commerce as well as the benefits of MATRADE’s eTRADE Programme. Complementing these was a series of one-to-one consultation sessions for the 100 Malaysian SMEs at the seminar.
According to MATRADE’s Senior Director of Export Promotion and Market Access Division, Abu Bakar Yusof, the Malaysian automotive industry is an important and strategic segment of the manufacturing sector. “The overall automotive industry and related sectors employ around 730,000 people and contribute RM40 billion to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This indicates the automotive sector’s importance to Malaysia and its role to accelerate the growth of Malaysia’s trade,†Abu Bakar said.
There are currently 27 vehicle brand manufacturers covering national and international brands in Malaysia. In addition, there are also 641 parts and components manufacturers and more than 53,011 after-sales businesses in the country.
“Automotive companies are urged to take advantage of the potential in e-commerce that is recognised as an effective enabler for the Malaysian economy. Currently, we are seeing a huge increase in sales for automotive parts and components on e-marketplaces for Malaysian SMEs. MATRADE would highly recommend local companies in the sector to adopt ecommerce to springboard the access to global markets,†Abu Bakar shared.
In the effort to increase the adoption of e-commerce among local SMEs, MATRADE has introduced its eTRADE Programme since 2014. The Programme facilitates the participation of Malaysian SMEs through various training programmes and financial support too. To date,
there are 123 automotive companies registered in the eTRADE Programme that have penetrated various markets around the world.
In 2018, Malaysia’s high-performing segments within the automotive sector were motor vehicles, parts and accessories. In the same year, these segments’ exports were valued at RM7.83 billion - an increase of 8.1 per cent compared 2017. Main export destinations were Thailand, China and Indonesia.
Malaysian SMEs in the automotive sector who are keen to venture abroad are advised to contact MATRADE and leverage on MATRADE’s 46 trade offices around the world. For more details they can visit www.matrade.gov.my or email to Alamat emel ini dilindungi dari Spambot. Anda perlu hidupkan JavaScript untuk melihatnya..
