KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia looks forward to global chipmaker Broadcom Ltd’s continued expansion in Malaysia as well as strengthening its global supply chain activity, said Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Azman Mahmud.
His remarks come in the wake of Broadcom’s decision to relocate its headquarters back to the United States from Singapore.
Broadcom’s relocation plan, said it would relocate its legal address to Delaware once shareholders approve the move, would bring US$20 billion in annual revenue back to the US.
Broadcom CEO Tan Hock Eng, who announced this in the White House on Thursday, said the decision to redomicile the company was because the US remains the best place to lead a business with a global footprint.
He also thanked US president Donald Trump for the steady improvement in business conditions.
Broadcom created waves in Malaysia in September when it announced its decision to expand its operations in Batu Kawan Industrial Park in Penang.
Tan, a Penang-born, has been president and CEO of the company since early last year.
“We’ve been updated by Broadcom that its current operations in Malaysia will not be affected, particularly the new Global Distribution Warehouse that was fully operational since 28 August 2017,” Azman told NST Business.
The warehouse is projected to ship globally more than 16 billion units a year at the value of RM65 billion once its principal hub in Penang was fully operational. That will make it the largest electronics and electrical (E&E) exporter in Malaysia.
“We look forward to Broadcom’s continued expansion in Malaysia by increasing the outsourcing of manufacturing activities to local companies as well as strengthening its Global Supply Chain activity.”
On US investments in the country, Azman said the world’s largest economy remains among the top 10 foreign investors and trading partners of Malaysia.
From 2015 to June 2017, MIDA has approved a total of 49 manufacturing projects with US participation involving investments of RM5.9 billion.
This shows that confidence levels are high towards Malaysia’s economic landscape, he added.
Broadcom’s presence would further strengthen Malaysia’s electrical and electronics (E&E) ecosystem and create vast business opportunities for companies in supporting industries.
Malaysia is now the world’s seventh largest exporter of E&E products with total exports of RM287.7 billion last year.