KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia attracted RM225 billion in approved investments in the services, manufacturing, and primary sectors for the January to September 2023 period, exceeding its full year target.
The services sector dominated investments inflow, bringing in about 52 per cent, or RM117 billion, of approved investments, while the manufacturing sector brought in 44 per cent, or RM99.8 billion, of approved investments.
DDI made up about 66 per cent of investments in the services sector while, FDI made up 85 per cent of investment in the manufacturng sector.
The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) said in a statement today that 3,949 investment projects pushed the value of investments up by 6.6 per cent from the same period in 2022.
The investments are expected to unlock 89,495 new job opportunities, showcasing Malaysia's resilience on the back of prevailing global operational uncertainties across various industries.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) constituted 55.9 per cent of the total approved investments at RM125.7 billion, while domestic direct investments (DDI) contributed RM99.3 billion, or 44.1 per cent of the total approved investments. The Netherlands was the top investor country with RM35.0 billion, followed by Singapore (RM20.4 billion), the United States (RM18.9 billion), the People's Republic of China (RM11.6 billion), and Japan (RM11.2 billion).
Meanwhile, DDI for the period jumped 45.2 per cent year-on-year, indicating the confidence of local players in the country's prospects.
The five states took the lion share of investments, namely Kuala Lumpur (RM48.9 billion) Pulau Pinang (RM44.9 billion), Selangor (RM41.6 billion), Kedah (RM22.6 billion), and Johor (RM20.0 billion).
Collectively, these states accounted for 60.2 per cent of the total approved investments for the reporting period.
Investment, Trade and Industry (Miti) Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said the approved investment sum is a testament to Malaysia's continued attractiveness as an investment destination, as well as collaborative whole-of-government and the whole-of-nation efforts in attracting, facilitating and retaining investments, while enhancing the ease of doing business under the Madani Economy framework.
"Investment inflow from countries such as The Netherlands, Singapore, the United States, China, and Japan reflect the type of high-tech, strategic investments that Malaysia is targeting from global players. "But this is no time for complacency. Miti and its agency, Mida, will continue to position Malaysia as a highly viable and stable destination to strategically capture more inflows from the redesigning of supply chains in the global investment landscape, in line with our industrial transformation as stipulated in the New Industrial Master Plan (NIMP) 2030," he said in a statement.
On a sectoral basis, the services sector led the way in terms of approved investments from Jan to Sept 2023, accounting for RM117.7 billion or 52.3 per cent of the total approvals.
The sector is expected to create 40,607 new jobs, which also reflects the sector's attractiveness for investments.
The manufacturing sector in Malaysia attracted a total of RM99.8 billion in approved investments, accounting for 44.4 per cent of the total approved investments across all sectors.
This marks a significant increase of 53.9 per cent from the RM64.9 billion recorded in the same period in 2022.
The primary sector sees RM7.5 billion in approved investments, constituting 3.3 per cent of the total approvals.
Driven by 58 projects, it anticipates creating 392 new jobs, with a focus on mining (RM7.2 billion), and plantation and commodities (RM0.2 billion).
Mida chief executive officer Datuk Arham Abdul Rahman said Malaysia's investment landscape presents bright prospects with a pipeline of proposed investments and lead projects overseen by Mida.
He added that as of Nov 2023, there are a total of 1,428 projects with proposed investments of RM72.3 billion within Mida's pipeline.
"Of these proposed investments, a total of 1,352 projects are from the selected services sector (RM31.8 billion), while 76 projects are from the manufacturing sector (RM40.5 billion), all of which fall under Mida's purview.
"Additionally, a total amount of RM161.6 billion in high potential investment leads are actively being negotiated by Mida," he noted.
Arham also said the Task Force on Investment and Trade Coordination (JTPPP) stands as a beacon of coordination, diligently monitoring and accelerating the execution of strategic projects.
He also added that the recently launched Invest Malaysia Facilitation Centre (IMFC) stands tall as a symbol of progressive facilitation, augmenting advisory services for businesses at both federal and state levels