KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 — Malaysia and South Korea have resumed the Malaysia-Korea Free Trade Agreement (MKFTA), which is set to increase bilateral trade and investment between the two countries, a statement from the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry said today.

Currently, both countries are parties to the Asean-Korea Free Trade Agreement and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, the statement said.

Bilateral trade growth and industry demand between the two countries have been encouraging, and the MKFTA is expected to cover the digital economy, the green economy, supply chain and bio-economy.

Malaysia was represented by Investment, Trade, and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz and South Korea’s Trade Minister Cheong Inkyo.

Malaysia-South Korea’s bilateral trade trended up over the last few years, Tengku Zafrul said.

"As Malaysia’s eighth largest trading partner, and a key collaborator to Malaysia’s Look East Policy, the resumption of the FTA between Malaysia and South Korea is both timely and strategic.

"Malaysia-South Korea trade relationship has existed for over four decades, and we hope to leverage this to help us move our target industries up the global value chain in sectors such as electrical and electronics (E&E), medical devices, pharmaceuticals, the green economy and chemicals,” he said in the statement.

In 2023, total trade with South Korea amounted to RM111.1 billion (US$24.3 billion).

Malaysia was ranked South Korea’s third largest trading partner in Asean, and 12th largest globally, with total trade amounting to RM118.4 billion (US$25 billion) in the same period.

Malaysia’s major exports to Korea were E&E products, liquefied natural gas (LNG), petroleum products, metal products and optical and scientific equipment.

Major imports from South Korea were petroleum products, E&E products, chemical and chemical products, machinery, equipment and parts, and iron and steel products.

South Korea has been one of Malaysia’s top sources of foreign direct investment for the manufacturing sector.

As of December 2023, a total of 390 projects worth US$10.7 billion (RM40 billion) were implemented, generating 48,374 jobs.

Most of these investments were in chemical and chemical products, basic metal products, electrical and electronics, petroleum products and food manufacturing products. It is estimated that around 500 South Korean companies are operating in Malaysia.

Malaysian investments in South Korea amounted to US$10.2 million (RM48.2 million) based on third-quarter 2023 data with investments in manufacturing (electronics, steel, petrochemicals), construction, information technology (IT) services, wholesale and retail and logistics. — Bernama