Malaysia approves RM164bil investments in 2020, China top investor
02 Mar 2021
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia approved RM164 billion investments through 4,599 projects in the manufacturing, services and primary sectors in 2020 with China being the top investor, according to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida).
This was lower than the 5,287 projects with investments of RM211.4 billion approved in 2019.
Mida said the decline was weighed by the services and primary sectors which were directly impacted by declines in global demands due to the pandemic and the Movement Control Order (MCO) implementation.
The RM164 billion investments are expected to create 114,673 new jobs in various sectors of the economy once implemented.
Senior Minister and Minister of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said against the backdrop of the challenges due to the pandemic, new project investments, accounting for 66.9 per cent of the total manufacturing projects approved, had been secured in 2020.
This was a testament to the ministry and Mida’s efforts to ensure business continuity and investors’ friendly policies were in place to enable investors to have the confidence to establish new operations in the country, said Azmin.
“Our team has also tenaciously worked to ensure projects approved are implemented smoothly. This can be seen through the commendable rate of implementation in approved projects.
“For the period 2016-2020, a total of 4,178 projects were approved, of which 70.0 per cent with investments worth RM197.2 billion have been implemented in the country,” he said.
In 2020, domestic direct investments (DDI) accounted for the bulk of the total approved investments with a contribution of 60.9 per cent (RM99.8 billion), while foreign direct investments (FDI) made up the remaining RM64.2 billion (39.1 per cent).
The manufacturing sector led the way for total investments approved in 2020, recording RM91.3 billion, followed by the services sector RM66.7 billion and the primary sector with RM6.0 billion.
China (RM18.1 billion), Singapore (RM10.0 billion) and the Netherlands (RM7.0 billion) were the top three FDI sources from overall economic sectors in Malaysia, accounting for more than half (54.8 per cent) of the total approved FDI for the year.
Selangor (RM38.7 billion) recorded the highest investments approved last year, followed by Sabah (RM21.0 billion), Sarawak (RM19.6 billion), Kuala Lumpur (RM17.1 billion) and Pulau Pinang (RM16.0 billion). These five states contributed more than 60 per cent of the total approved investments for 2020.
Mida said the manufacturing sector had the most significant multiplier effect on the nation’s activities and growth; it will continue to be the mainstay of the economy.
When implemented, these approved manufacturing projects will create new jobs for more than 80,000 people.
FDI accounted for 62 per cent (RM56.6 billion) of total approved investments in the manufacturing sector, while domestic investments constituted the remaining 38 per cent (RM34.7 billion).
Despite the challenging times, DDI surged by 22.6 per cent while FDI increased by 3.9 per cent compared to 2019.
As at December 2020, Mida had RM65.9 billion worth of potential investments being actively evaluated.
The projects, once approved, are expected to be implemented from 2021 to 2022.
Mida has also identified 240 high-profile foreign investment projects, including Fortune 500 companies in the manufacturing and services sectors, with a combined potential investment value of RM81.9 billion.
Azmin said the government’s newly-unveiled Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDigital) would accelerate Malaysia’s progress to becoming a technologically-advanced economy.
“The 10-year roadmap will lay the foundations for the country’s transformation towards an advanced digital economy and guide the ministry and Mida in our efforts to continue attracting high-value investments of the future.
“As we forge ahead in the new year on the path of economic revitalisation coupled with the rollout of the national vaccination programme, the government remains committed to prioritising the needs of our people and businesses,” he added.
Source: NST
