Apec continues to strengthen Malaysia's business growth

 

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said through the expansion of trade, Malaysians were able to experience positive spill-over effects.- NSTP/ASYRAF HAMZAH.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's involvement in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) has continued to strengthen its business growth through intra-regional trade expansion, bringing substantial progress to the economy.

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said through the expansion of trade, Malaysians were able to experience positive spill-over effects.

These, he said, were in the forms of job creation, knowledge transfer and the strategic placement of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in the global value chain.

Muhyiddin, who is Apec 2020 chair, said to date Malaysia's trade with Apec member economies had increased by more than seven-fold in the past decade.

"In 2019, Apec economies collectively contributed 78 per cent of Malaysia's total trade.

"Similarly, Apec economies as a grouping were the largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Malaysia, and this represents 91 per cent of Malaysia's total FDI flows for last year," he said tonight in the first ever fully virtual Apec Economic Leaders' Meeting.

Meanwhile, he said, from a regional perspective, the World Bank's Doing Business database indicated that Apec had made strides towards elimination of non-tariff barriers by way of streamlining processes, reducing costs and time, with regard to carrying out trade activities.

These regulatory reforms, he said, had further enhanced the ease of doing business in Apec.

In 1994, the Apec member economies agreed to the Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific by 2020.

Muhyiddin said since the Bogor Goals were first articulated in 1994, total trade between Apec economies and the rest of the world had increased by more than four-fold.

"We now represent almost 50 per cent of total world trade. Reflecting the depth of our economic integration, more than two-thirds of the trade by Apec economies is with other Apec economies.

"A similar story emerges on the investment-side as well. Since the year 2000, capital inflows into Apec economies have increased by two-thirds and capital outflows have tripled.

"We now constitute half of the world's top 10 FDI recipients," he added.

Established in 1989, APEC economies account for 60 per cent of the world's GDP and 48 per cent of global trade.

Malaysia is hosting the meeting for the second time. The first was in 1998. - NST