LABUAN, Feb 3 — Five development projects costing RM9.63 million will be implemented in this duty-free island this year, says Labuan Corporation chief executive officer, Dr Fary Akmal Osman.

She said the allocation under the 12th Malaysia Plan from the Federal Territories Ministry included the continuation of four projects, namely, Labuan Smart City Phase 1 and upgrading works on the Labuan Square public recreational area and infrastructure, Labuan Corporation staff headquarters and Patau-Patau 1 Community Hall with a total cost of RM7.63 million.

“The new project for this year will be the new cell sanitary landfill and upgrading works on the leachate treatment plant worth RM2 million, revised from the estimated cost of over RM31.68 million.

“We will ensure the projects run smoothly amid the COVID-19 pandemic,” she told Bernama.

Fary said the Smart City Phase 1 project costing RM2 million is for the siren and smart pole system in 13 areas (covering 27 villages) including one in downtown.

“The construction of the siren and smart poles is in collaboration with the Malaysian Meteorological Department to channel updated information on the weather and natural disaster to the people here,” she said.

Fary also disclosed that at least nine proposed development projects have been submitted to the Federal Territories Ministry for funding, namely, construction of facilities for small and medium enterprises, upgrading works on the Labuan Ferry Terminal building, Anjung Budaya and Layang-Layangan Beach Festival sites and Phase 1 of the pedestrian walkway.

Other proposed projects are Phase 2 of the Kina Benuwa mangrove recreational forest and tourism infrastructure, pathway to Pulau Ular Layang-Layangan, pedestrian roofed walkway in town, Labuan Airport landscape beautification and upgrading works, and Phase 2 of the Smart City project. “These nine proposed projects have not been approved for implementation this year, but we will continue to convince and discuss with the ministry’s officials for consideration owing to the economic impact and the people’s social well-being,” Fary said.

Sumber: Bernama

Five development projects worth RM9.63 mln for Labuan in 2021

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is still on track to achieve its gross domestic product (GDP) growth target of between 6.5% and 7.5% for 2021 despite a further extension of the movement control order (MCO 2.0), as the various stimulus packages and impending vaccine rollout will help steer the country towards recovery.

Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said Malaysia had learnt some “valuable lessons” following the implementation of the first MCO last year and is optimistic that the current lockdown will not be as detrimental.

“The impact on the economy during the MCO in March 2020 was around RM2.4bil per day, but under the current one (MCO 2.0), it is about RM700mil per day. “Under MCO 2.0, we considered various sectors and how much they contributed to the economy and allowed five key sectors to continue to operate, ” he said yesterday in a virtual programme “Menang Bersama: Rebuilding Malaysia’s Economy Together, ” which was moderated by Bursa Malaysia Bhd chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar.

MCO 2.0, which was implemented on Jan 13, has been extended until Feb 18 for all states in Malaysia except Sarawak.

The five key economic sectors that have been allowed to operate are factories and manufacturing, construction, services, trades and distribution, and plantation and commodities.

Tengku Zafrul did say however that a further extension of the MCO will have an impact on the country’s GDP growth target.

“For now, the 6.5% and 7.5% growth target will be maintained. The vaccine rollout will also be key in ensuring that our economy recovers.”

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has said that the government is targeting to vaccinate more than 80% of its population or close to 27 million people by the first quarter of 2022.

Tengku Zafrul is confident that this target will be met.

“I’m optimistic about achieving that deadline. We are in agreement with Covax, Pfizer and AstraZeneca. We are also in negotiations with other potential producers.”

Tengku Zafrul emphasised that the various stimulus packages will also help spur the Malaysian economy.

“The focus this year will also be on the rollout of the initiatives under the budget. It’s still early in the year so we can repurpose the allocation.

“What’s important is that whatever we spend is helping the economy and not going to waste.”

Additionally, Tengku Zafrul elaborated how the local corporate sector could also help to beef up the Malaysian economy.

“With the right support from the shareholders, the board and the right execution, we can transform companies and have them contribute more. Today’s government-linked companies are stepping up because they already have that foundation already built.

“Now we need to see how they can expand that by supporting their role as a nation builder as well.”

Tengku Zafrul said one important way companies within the private sector could help is by embracing environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG).

“You need to embrace ESG and Bursa Malaysia is one of the lead proponents of that and embracing ESG will allow corporates to be more sustainable.

“Malaysian corporates have been great at being national champions. But listed and private companies need to have the aspiration to expand out of Malaysia. We need to see that happening more.”

Tengku Zafrul said the private sector could also play a part in developing its human capital.

“Where the private sector can help is on human capital. I think investments in the right technology will allow them to get the right support from the government and equip them to train and ensure that our Malaysians are gunning for the kind of jobs where, at the end of the day, their livelihoods are better.

“Human capital is key because we want to move towards the fourth industrial revolution as a country and the corporates have a role to play in assisting that as well.”  

Source: The Star

Malaysia can achieve GDP growth target

PETALING JAYA: CIMB Bank Bhd and CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd have launched CIMB GreenBizReady, a one-stop sustainability solution for Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) looking to start and progress on their sustainability journey.

With an allocation of RM250 million, SMEs will be empowered through financial solutions and incentives such as sustainability-linked financing benefits, access to sustainability service providers, training and capacity building, certification and advisory services, and business matching with support from industry leaders and government agencies.

Through GreenBizReady, CIMB hopes to catalyse the transition of Malaysian SMEs towards the green economy, and will provide SMEs with a competitive advantage by equipping them with practical knowledge and tools to incorporate economic, environmental and social considerations into their business, helping them become sustainability-ready for long-term business resilience.

CIMB Islamic CEO Ahmad Shahriman Mohd Shariff said the GreenBizReady solution will enable SMEs to embark on their transition towards sustainability in line with global standards and best practices.

“Over time, as participating SMEs progress on their respective sustainability journeys and achieve certain milestones, they will then be able to enjoy the benefits of being sustainability-linked business including wider product marketability, potential cost saving, lower carbon footprint and potential sustainability-linked financing benefits,” he said.

Among the organisations and government agencies who will be working with CIMB as part of GreenBizReady are Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Centre, Malaysian Investment Development Authority, Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation,TNBX Sdn Bhd, Impacto Sdn Bhd, Sirm Bhd, Private Financing Advisory Network, OpenSys Technologies Sdn Bhd, Aerodyne Group, Mentari Alam EKO (M) Sdn Bhd, Sols Energy Sdn Bhd and Revotech Electrical Sdn Bhd.

Source: The Sun Daily

CIMB launches GreenBizReady to help SMEs embrace sustainability

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 2  – Malaysia’s trade is expected to recover in 2021 backed by a recovery in global demand, especially for agricultural and manufactured goods, as COVID-19 threats recede following a massive global vaccination programme.

In its Economic Update today, Public Investment Bank Bhd (PIVB) said there would also be sustained global demand for information technology products amid a pandemic condition that increased demand for devices such as computers and tablets for home-based work and learning. 

A global 5G network transition by 2025 may in turn underpin a surge in demand for 5G-enabled products, it said. 

However, PIVB said trade may continue to be weighed down by the steep output cut by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its oil-producing allies (OPEC+) until at least the second quarter of 2021, and economic challenges in advanced and major economies due to COVID-19 headwinds especially in first half of this year.

Other possible hampering factors are a resurgence in new domestic COVID-19 cases that may push consumers to remain cautious and continue preserving capital as well as the uncertainty caused by the US-China second trade negotiations, which could begin as early as this quarter.

“Notwithstanding that, 2021 is expected to be a better year amid a removal of the single largest drag to growth, the COVID-19 pandemic, though growth may re-accelerate only in the second half of the 2021,” said PIVB. 

The bank noted several positive economic indicators, including the December 2020 trade surplus. “It (the surplus) remained impressive after surging by 64.9 per cent year-on-year to RM20.7 billion in December 2020, pushing full-year surplus to RM184.7 billion, the highest on record, compared to RM146 billion in 2019,” it said.

It added that trade surplus may remain sanguine in 2021 driven by full economic openings across ASEAN and China as well as nascent global economic recovery due to rapid COVID-10 vaccination programmes.

However, this may be offset by the expected turnaround in imports, as well as uncertainty and risks from US-China second trade deal, it said.

Meanwhile, Maybank IB Research in its note echoed the view on a global economic recovery that would boost Malaysia’s trade performance.

It said both exports and imports were expected to rebound by 6.0 per cent and 7.0 per cent, respectively, with a trade surplus of RM187.8 billion in 2021. 

In 2020, both exports and imports contracted for a second consecutive year — by -1.4 per cent (2019: -0.8 per cent) and -6.3 per cent (2019: -3.5 per cent), respectively. 

Source: Bernama

Malaysia’s trade expected to recover in 2021 — Investment banks

KUALA LUMPUR – The essential and critical sectors are still contributing significantly to national gross domestic product (GDP) even during the current movement control order (MCO 2.0) period, according to Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.

He said key sectors such as commodities, mining and agriculture are allowed to operate nearly at full capacity as they are capital intensive and require less physical worker interaction.

“MCO 2.0 is a dynamic plan. We have considered each sector based on its contribution to the economy,” he said during the Bursa Malaysia Forum aired on Bernama TV (Astro 502) today.

He was speaking during the question-and-answer (Q&A) session moderated by Bursa Malaysia Bhd chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar at the forum themed “Menang Bersama: Rebuilding Malaysia’s Economy Together”.

“So, I think at the end of the day, if you look at the differences between MCO 1.0 and MCO 2.0, the key point here is the learning that we had in MCO 1.0.

“But we need to make sure that we have a consistent policy going forward, and with these new guidelines — I think I mentioned it before — the impact to Malaysia’s GDP on the daily basis is around RM700 million compared to about RM2.4 billion per day previously [during MCO 1.0],” he noted.

Earlier in his speech, Tengku Zafrul said there has been plenty of debate on whether the country should go into a full lockdown.

“It has been highly challenging to balance the safety of people’s lives, and the security of their livelihoods. It involves many factors, requiring careful deliberation and thought, and constant review as the situation evolves. 

“We must also realise that there are harms that may be difficult to predict. The economy does not operate at the flick of a switch. There is no ‘turning it off’, and then ‘turning it back on’ as we see fit. Livelihoods depend on it,” he added.

Hence, the minister said, Malaysians must look at this issue squarely in the face and ask ourselves with honesty: “What is the real impact of our losses if we had a stricter ‘lockdown’ this time around?”

Tengku Zafrul said it is inevitable that policymakers and market regulators talk about the economic effect of the lockdown from a macro perspective. 

“But behind all the numbers, there are real people who are facing real survival issues as they face a tighter lockdown. This is especially true for the micro and small businesses: the restaurant operators, food stall owners, tailors, barbers, fruit sellers, laundry operators and countless more — people who draw income from daily demand for their goods and services.

“This is simply about the reality of survival — the ability to put food on the table for the family each and every day. For them, the balancing act is just a theory and holds little meaning in their quest for daily survival,” he said.

Tengku Zafrul said the biggest lesson from MCO 1.0 is “our acknowledgement that a lockdown and ensuring the economy survives are not and must not be mutually exclusive”.

He pointed out that over 70% of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia posted a loss in 2020. 

“It goes without saying that a strict lockdown will hit our SMEs, or over 900,000 businesses nationwide.  “Within this are small and micro-business owners whose livelihoods are immediately affected by even a day of lockdown, what more a 14-day shutdown?” he noted.

Essential, critical sectors remain major contributors to GDP during MCO 2.0, says Tengku Zafrul

Moody’s Investors Service’s reaffirmation of Malaysia’s sovereign rating is testimony to the government’s strong fiscal discipline and the country’s growth prospects amid the Covid-19 pandemic, economists said.

Putra Business School Associate Professor Dr Ahmed Razman Abdul Latiff said the decision by Moody’s to maintain Malaysia’s A3 rating with a stable outlook was a confirmation that the government was on the right track to boost the economy into positive growth this year.

Razman said the government’s continuous effort since the beginning of the year to address the economic crisis caused by the pandemic was clear by the introduction of five economic stimulus packages worth RM305 billion last year, on top of RM322.5 billion allocated under the 2021 Budget.

“Such commitment continued this year with the launch of the latest package Permai worth RM15 billion which involves mainly direct fiscal injection initiatives such as Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) 2.0, Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat (BPR), Wage Subsidy Programme (PSU) and Prihatin Special Grant.

“Such direct fiscal injection has been proven in the past to be effective in increasing liquidity and business transactions in the market,” he said.

Razman said another plus point for the government was the efficiency of distribution of such financial assistance which had been highlighted by the Economic Stimulus Implementation & Coordination Unit Between National Agencies (Laksana) unit recently.

“This will definitely improve the confidence among the rakyat and businesses especially when the government continuously keeps improving the scope and method of some of the stimulus such as wider scope for PSU and advance payment under the i-Sinar program,” he added.

Bank Islam chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the Moody’s assesment suggested that the credit rating agencies were very subjective and differed from one to the other.

Afzanizam said in the case of Moody’s, it had recognised that the pandemic was not expected to have a long-lasting effect and the huge savings would allow some flexibility for the government to tap the local capital markets for funding.

“They have kept the rating at A3 with a stable outlook. This suggests the rating should remain unchanged in the next 12 months.

“However, their concern remains on the debt level and the widening of fiscal deficits. Hence, the government should address this issue once the pandemic has been fully resolved,” he said.

Moody’s, in a statement on Jan 28, said the rating affirmation was based on its expectation that Malaysia’s medium-term growth prospects would remain strong.

This was underpinned by the country’s diversified and competitive economy and supportive demographics, while its macroeconomic policymaking institutions would continue to be credible and effective, which provides resilience to the sovereign credit profile.

These strengths it outlined are balanced against the government’s relatively high and increased debt burden, which will leave the government with weakened fiscal strength for some time in the aftermath of the pandemic shock to public finances.

Moody’s also said it did not expect the pandemic to have a sustained negative impact on Malaysia’s economic model.

It expects Malaysia’s economy to rebound to around six per cent this year after last year’s sharp contraction.

Beyond 2021, Moody’s expects the economy to grow at a strong average of 5.0-5.5 per cent over 2022-2023.

This is higher than the median of 3.4 per cent over the same period for similarly rated peers, on the assumption that the government can effectively curb the spread of the virus.

Source: NST

‘On right track to boost economy’

Malaysia’s external trade performed fairly well despite the unprecedented scenario, with exports rebounding in the second half of 2020 compared to the negative growth in the first half of the year, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) said.

Senior minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said this could be attributed to the progressive opening of the economy and gradual recovery of external demand.

“In fact, exports in December was the highest monthly value recorded for 2020, with exports to China recorded a new high in 2020 and similar momentum was reported for the United States which posted the largest value in the last decade,” he said in a statement today.

Malaysia’s exports in December 2020 registered a double-digit growth of 10.8 per cent to RM95.74 billion, year-on-year (y-o-y).

This was the highest monthly export recorded in 2020 and the second highest export value ever registered after RM97.12 billion in October 2018.

Expansion in exports were seen to Singapore, China, the US, India, and Hong Kong.

Total trade in December 2020 expanded by 6.5 per cent to RM170.78 billion from December 2019, while imports increased by 1.6 per cent to RM75.04 billion.

Trade surplus surged by 64.9 per cent to RM20.7 billion and was the highest trade surplus ever recorded for the month of December.

On a month-on-month (m-o-m) basis, total trade, exports, imports and trade surplus recorded a double-digit growth of 12.2 per cent, 13.1 per cent, 11 per cent, and 21.4 per cent, respectively.

Mohamed Azmin said there was a significant export growth to the emerging markets, notably Costa Rica, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, and Cote d’Ivoire.

Rubber products, electrical and electronics products, as well as palm oil and palm oil-based agriculture products registered strong export expansion.

Source: Bernama

Malaysia’s external trade fairly well despite unprecedented scenario, says MITI

Development partner Italy wants to strengthen ties with Asean, says envoy

Italy remains committed to Malaysia as a trading and investment partner, and sees Malaysia as a gateway to opportunities arising from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Italian investments in Malaysia are present in sectors such as oil and gas, petrochemicals, aerospace, and the green and circular economy.

Its ambassador to Malaysia Cristiano Maggipinto said greater collaboration between the two countries would enable Malaysia’s private sector to tap Italy’s advanced technological expertise and expedite Malaysia’s digital economy.

He said Italy had pursued a strategy with the aim of strengthening relations with Asean.

This was demonstrated at the 53rd session of the Asean Ministers of Foreign Affairs Summit where Italy’s candidacy as development partner was unanimously approved.

“In this framework, Italy has given new depth to the relations with Malaysia, which represents one of the most relevant actors in the area and offers a number of benefits not easily found in the region,” said Maggipinto at the

“Italian Industry Expertise in Malaysia” webinar hosted by CARI, an agency focused on Asean research and advocacy, in partnership with the Asean Business Club.

CARI Asean Research and Advocacy chairman Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid said in his opening statement that the Invest Asean series intended to provide an active forum for influential policymakers and corporate leaders to share and identify key opportunities for growth and development in the region through an analysis on the emerging trends affecting global business and markets.

“Notwithstanding the Covid-19- induced global slowdown, Asean remains a dynamic region. With a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of US$3.2 trillion in 2019, Asean represented the fifth-largest economy in the world.”

Munir said as the central player of the RCEP agreement, Asean provided a regional platform for external businesses to tap into the largest free-trade agreement in the world.

With 15 signatories, RCEP represented a market of 2.2 billion people and a combined GDP of US$26.2 trillion, he said.

“On the other side of the equation, many of us do not recognise Italy is well above the European Union (EU) average in the production and use of industrial robots, and in the adoption of technologies such as cloud, Internet of Things and machine-to-machine communications.

“It is the second largest manufacturer in the EU after Germany. Therefore, its strong industrial base and awareness of digitalisation are something that Asean countries would want to be engaged with,” he said.

Malaysian Investment Development Authority chief executive officer Datuk Azman Mahmud said the government was undertaking major initiatives to draw investments into Malaysia.

These include digitalising selected government services, providing tax incentives for the pharmaceutical and services sectors and implementing a onestop centre to facilitate the entry of business travellers into the country.

“As we move towards strategic diversification, particularly in high-value products and highend services, the country offers vast opportunities for Italian investments in machinery and equipment, aerospace, green technology, automotive technologies and industrial design,” he said.

Source: NST

‘Malaysia is gateway to RCEP’