Agong welcomes Malaysia’s investment success post-pandemic

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong today welcomed the government’s efforts to accelerate and improve investment and trade performance post Covid-19, saying Malaysia’s “proactive actions” have been recognised in the global arena.

Speaking his royal address at the opening of the First Meeting of the Fifth Session of the 14th Parliament today, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah said Malaysia had been ranked as the most attractive investment destination for foreign investors among emerging Southeast Asian economies by the Milken Institute Global Opportunity Index 2022.

“The performance in investments amounting to RM220.8 billion that were approved for the manufacturing and services sectors under the supervision of the Malaysian Investment Development Authority in 2021 is also outstanding and encouraging where 80,000 new jobs will be created for local talents,” he said.

Adding that Malaysia’s trade performance had topped RM2 trillion for the first time in 2021, with total exports valued at RM1.24 trillion, he said the country had achieved its total export target of RM1.25 trillion for 2025 four years ahead of schedule.

“We believe this success reflects foreign investors’ confidence in our economic fundamentals and investment ecosystem,” he added.

The 2022 Milken Institute Global Opportunity Index, released last month, placed Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia at the top spots in emerging Southeast Asia.

Malaysia received the highest ranking in the region due to its strong performance across all categories measured. Vietnam and the Philippines rounded out the top five countries in emerging Southeast Asia.