KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 13 — Malaysia aims to maintain its strong economic growth momentum while prioritising the sustainable development goals (SDGs), with a particular focus on climate change, renewable energy, and emerging technologies — areas where China has demonstrated significant strength.

Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said China has been Malaysia’s largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years, underscoring the strong trade partnership between the two nations.

“I think China has been very supportive and very open with companies and investors from Malaysia, as well as when it comes to trading with Malaysia. So, this is an area where we think is very important.

“And next year, when Malaysia chairs ASEAN, we have put one of the deliverables, especially on the economic deliverable, is to upgrade the ASEAN trade in goods agreement with China. So that, I think, will again improve trade between Malaysia and China,” he said during an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) posted on his X platform last night.

He said the 14 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) that were signed when Chinese Premier Li Qiang was visiting Malaysia earlier this year show how strong the relationship with China is when it comes to business-to-business services especially in the area of digital.

“It’s an area where Malaysia is going to push very strong. In fact, if you look at investments, digital investment is one of the biggest investments into the country and we are one of the biggest exporters in electrical and electronics as well,” he said. — Bernama