Malaysia has emerged as Asean’s top performer, with more than 35% of global corporates planning to increase or maintain trade activities with the nation, according to Standard Chartered’s Future of Trade report.
Interest is particularly strong from Mainland China and the US — Malaysia’s largest trading partners — where over half of corporates expressed plans to trade with or manufacture in Malaysia.
Intra-Asean trade flows are also set to rise, with Thailand and Indonesia looking to source more from Malaysia, while the Philippines and Vietnam plan to boost exports into the country, the report said.
Singapore corporates, meanwhile, are considering new manufacturing facilities in Malaysia, encouraged by competitive labour, policy incentives and lower tariff risks.
The recently announced Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone is expected to further streamline bilateral trade and investment across manufacturing, logistics and technology sectors.
Such zones also help mitigate geopolitical risks, reduce tariff exposure and cut operating costs — key factors corporates weigh when selecting investment destinations, the report noted.
At the same time, macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds are already reshaping corporate strategies. Around 80% of respondents in Malaysia expect overall goods costs to rise by 10%-19% in the medium term. To adapt, 78% plan to increase digitalisation, while 70% and 64% aim to realign supply chains geographically and adjust treasury management strategies respectively.
Geopolitical conflict is seen as the top factor shaping the future of trade by 76% of corporates in Malaysia, followed by trade tariffs (62%) and emerging technologies (58%).
“These findings paint a complex yet compelling future for trade, as corporates navigate around the fact that the same trends that threaten to disrupt operations can also be opportunities in shaping global trade,” said Mak Joon Nien, the chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Malaysia, in a statement on Wednesday.
The findings are based on a survey of 1,200 C-suite and senior leaders at global corporates, covering their outlook for global trade and strategies over the next three to five years.
The report also highlights top destinations that multinationals are considering for realigning sourcing, manufacturing and exports, alongside actionable insights to support decision-making.
Source: theedgemalaysia