Kuala lumpur: Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz has emphasized that Malaysia’s purchase and investment commitments in the tariff negotiations with the United States are purely commercial agreements by private companies and government-linked companies (GLCs), ensuring no involvement of public funds or increase in the country’s fiscal burden.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Tengku Zafrul highlighted that this strategy safeguards the welfare of the people and maintains the country’s fiscal sovereignty. He explained that these commitments, although large in scale, are executed over a span of five to ten years as commercial transactions and investments by Malaysian companies and GLCs, avoiding a one-time financial outflow.
Responding to a query from Lim Guan Eng (Bagan-PH) in the Dewan Rakyat, Tengku Zafrul detailed the government’s efforts in achieving a 19 percent tariff negotiation outcome, successfully reducing the countervailing tariff rate from 25 percent, effective from August 7, 2025. The negotiations, led by the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) with support from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and other key stakeholders, demonstrated Malaysia’s ability for effective global diplomacy.
Tengku Zafrul assured that the negotiations were driven by strategic interests, preserving national dignity and key policies, such as Bumiputera equity requirements, halal standards, and control over strategic sectors. The main aim was to address the trade deficit with the US, considering a whole-of-nation procurement approach.
The commitments involve US$150 billion in purchases and investments in sectors like semiconductors, aerospace, and data centers over five years, alongside US$19 billion for purchasing Boeing aircraft by Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) until 2035. These phased procurements represent about 8.0 percent of Malaysia’s GDP or 13.5 percent of private expenditure in 2024.
Economically, the total value parallels annual operating expenditures of major corporations and GLCs, encompassing raw material purchases, technology investments, and asset upgrades. Malaysia has also offered tariff concessions, eliminating or reducing tariffs on 98.4 percent of US product lines, with 60.4 percent subject to zero duty rates and others seeing reductions up to 15 percent.
Tengku Zafrul noted that Malaysia has facilitated non-tariff barriers like JAKIM-compliant halal certification, and improved monitoring of labor, environmental, and intellectual property standards, benefiting US exports of meat and dairy products.