Kuala Lumpur: The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) identifies significant potential for Malaysia and Qatar to diversify their trade basket, focusing on high-value manufacturing, Islamic finance, the halal sector, and the digital economy. Deputy Minister Liew Chin Tong emphasized the value Malaysia places on Qatar’s confidence in its business environment, acknowledging that Qatari investments have traditionally been concentrated in real estate and hospitality. This presents an opportunity to broaden the investment portfolio into other sectors.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Malaysia aims to become a regional leader in advanced manufacturing and high-value industries by 2030. The nation invites Qatari investors to explore emerging sectors such as food manufacturing and agriculture, leveraging Malaysia’s robust halal ecosystem. There are also opportunities in the oil and gas, petrochemicals, and metal products sectors, capitalizing on Malaysia’s expertise and infrastructure. The aerospace, renewable energy, artificial intelligence, and digital economy sectors also present vast opportunities for collaboration.

At the Malaysia-Qatar Business Council (MQBC) meeting, Deputy Minister Liew expressed gratitude to MQBC chairman Datuk Mohamed Razeek Md Hussain Maricar for his leadership for the 2024 – 2027 term. He highlighted the importance of the meeting as a reaffirmation of the economic and commercial ties between Malaysia and Qatar, which have grown since diplomatic relations were established in 1974.

Malaysia-Qatar bilateral trade surged by 48.9 percent last year, reaching RM6.3 billion compared to RM4.2 billion in 2023. Despite Malaysia recording a trade deficit of RM4.07 billion, mainly due to increased imports of crude and petroleum products, this situation underscores the potential for greater collaboration in new and high-growth sectors.