KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — Political stability, far-sighted economic policies and the green transition provide a golden opportunity for a second surge in the country's economy after the first jump made in the early 1990s.

Deputy Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Liew Chin Tong said the competition between China and the United States has pushed investments into the Southeast Asian region and that Malaysia plays an important role in attracting investors.

"When investors do the calculations, they know Malaysia has good logistics, a fair Common Law framework and many workers who are fluent in several languages in addition to being well educated.

"This is an opportunity for Malaysia to make a second leap. The first jump was successfully made in the early 1990s when economic growth, job opportunities, wages, and the standard of living of the people were in a positive environment,” he said.

The comments were made through his blog, Liew Chin Thong, titled "The Second Surge of the Malaysian Economy” which is a sharing of his speech during the Civil Discussion: Unity Aspiration Strengthening the Bumiputera Agenda at the Bumiputera Economic Congress 2024 (KEB 2024) on Thursday (Feb 29).

Liew added that Malaysia does not need to compete with neighbouring countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia to attract investments because the strength of the country's economy has put Malaysia at a level almost on par with Singapore.

"Perhaps it would be better if we could establish cooperation through vertical integration with Vietnam and Indonesia,” he commented. "This is because, if we want to compete with neighbouring countries, workers in Malaysia have to be paid low wages,” ― Bernama