mwb vol 300

Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Razak has called on Malaysians to pool their resources to ensure that Asean remains as the main pedestal that will keep Malaysia peaceful, stable and prosperous.

He said that Asean solidarity was one of the main factors that contributed to peace, stability and prosperity in the region and Malaysia would not enjoy progress if the region was embroiled in conflicts among themselves.

PEOPLE MUST ENSURE ASEAN BECOMES MAIN PEDESTAL FOR PEACEFUL MALAYSIA

Media release from YAB Prime Minister Malaysia

“As one of the founding members of Asean, Malaysia should be proud of the efforts and role played by the country to ensure the success of the block. Since its establishment in 1976, Asean had become the main thrust for foreign relations”.

“The setting up of Asean formed an important point in the efforts to create a peaceful, stable and prosperous South-east Asian region,” said Najib in his message in conjunction with the 47th Asean anniversary, which is celebrated on Aug 8, each year.

He said that Asean solidarity had succeeded in the block gaining the trust of the world community and was now ready to be integrated fully in the community.

Najib said Asean had the objective of creating a forward-looking community, playing a major role in the development of regional issues, contributing to the development of the community that was responsible and free from conflicts and vibrant in terms of the economy.

“All these will make Asean closer to the people and subsequently turn it into an organisation of caring and responsible society,” he said.

Referring to the selection of Malaysia as the Asean Chair next year, the Prime Minister said it was the responsibility of Kuala Lumpur to lead and guide efforts to strengthen the block in the post-2015 period.

He said that the coming chairmanship was most important to Malaysia because during that time, the Asean Community would be formed.

“It is our intention to enhance the involvement of all parties that have interests in Asean citivities. For this purpose, Malaysia upon becoming chairman in 2015 has chosen the main theme, that is People-Centered Asean,” he said.

Najib said the formation of Asean, which is centred on the people, could be considered as a concrete move towards realising the aspiration of the people to achieve good governance, transparency, higher standard of living, sustainable development, women empowerment and greater opportunities for everyone.

In order to ensure that Malaysians were involved in these noble efforts, he said the government would undertake various efforts to bring Asean closer to the people in this country.

“We will intensify efforts in the next few months to raise public awareness on Asean,” he said.

Meanwhile, Najib said that the slogan ‘Moving Forward in Unity to a Peaceful and Prosperous Community’ chosen by Myanmar as the Asean Chair this year was most appropriate.

“The slogan is most appropriate because it reminds us that Asean must always be forward thinking and progressive,” he added.

Source : BERNAMA, 8 August 2014

MITI Weekly Bulletin/ www.miti.gov.my

“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

MITI in the news

MALAYSIA’s trillion ringgit trade volume can be expanded further with its participation in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), as well as a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU), says International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.

“We have been doing well because of the open market created by the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) and FTAs.

“FTAs currently provide preferential access for 63.5 per cent of Malaysia’s trade, including with ASEAN, China and Japan. Access to these markets for the majority of our exports is already duty-free,” he said.

Malaysia has bilateral FTAs with Turkey, Pakistan, New Zealand, Chile, India, Australia and Japan.

TPP boost to trade volume

The TPP and EU FTA will provide another nine and 10 per cent in preferential access, respectively.

“With the removal of tariffs and additional preferences, Malaysian exporters stand to enjoy a better footing than neighbouring competitors.”

The EU FTA talks have been placed on hold but the TPP grouping talks have forged actively ahead in the past four years.

Eleven other Pacific Rim countries are involved in the TPP negotiations, and they are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States.

Mustapa highlighted five areas in which Malaysians stand to benefit in terms of market access due to tariff elimination which are electrical and electronics products; rubber gloves; palm oil and palm oil products; plywood; and timber and timber products.

For instance, in the area of electrical and electronics products, the current import duty ranges from three to five per cent for the United States, and Canada (five to 11 per cent), Mexico (five to 15 per cent) and Peru (nine per cent).

Rubber gloves, an export product Malaysia is widely acclaimed for, has the potential to enter Canada, Mexico and Peru, where the current import duty ranges between nine and 15.5 per cent.

Mustapa added that palm oil and palm oil products will also find easier access to Canada and Peru.

“We are currently negotiating for zerorated tariffs to come into effect immediately with the conclusion of the agreement.”

Negotiators held their last meeting in Ottawa, Canada, last month. Although there has been some progress in resolving technical issues, many sensitive issues remain outstanding, namely intellectual property rights, investor-state dispute settlement, government procurement (GP), environment and state-owned enterprises (SOEs).

US Trade Representative Michael Froman, who was here recently, said the country recognised Malaysia’s Bumiputera policy and its importance to the country, both economically and socially, and would consider it in discussions in the areas of GP and SOEs.

Source : Ministry of International Trade and Industry, 6 August 2014


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

MALAYSIAMalaysia’s Trade Performance, 1st Half 2014

ExportsRM337.8 bil.

ImportsRM313.2 bil.

1st Half 2013

ExportsRM380.1 bil.

ImportsRM335.5 bil.

1st Half 2014

Y-O-Y Growth

12.5% 7.1% 9.9%

Exports Imports Total Trade

Top Five Export Products Top Five Import Products

23.0

25.3

32.9

36.4

123.4

0 50 100 150

Palm Oil

Chemicals &Chemical Products

LNG

Petroleum Products

E&E

RM billion

20.3

28.6

31.0

41.4

88.9

0 20 40 60 80 100

Transport Equipment

Machinery,appliances & parts

Chemicals &Chemical Products

Petroleum Products

E&E

RM billion

Source : Department of Statistics, Malaysia

“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

MITI Weekly Bulletin/www.miti.gov.my


Exports to Selected FTA Partners, 2005-2014 (January-June)

18.3

26.1

13.9

2.835.22

1.942.034.36 2.94

0.30.5

0.20

5

10

15

20

25

30

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014(Jan-June)

RM

bill

ion

Korea Pakistan New Zealand Chile

Imports from Selected FTA Partners, 2005-2014 (January-June)

0.2 0.7

0.4

1.3

2.7

1.6

0.6

1.3

0.30.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014(Jan-June)

RM

billi

on

Pakistan New Zealand Chile

Top Five Trading Partners

RM99.3 bil. RM96.1 bil. RM70.3 bil. RM57.3 bil. RM40.0 bil.

PRC Singapore Japan USA Philippines


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

Export and Import Price Indices, January 2013-June 2014


125.8

123.7

112.9

113.3

100

105

110

115

120

125

130

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun

2013 2014

Inde

x

Export Import

Chile

Major Export Products with Selected FTA Partners, January-June 2014Korea

4.7

2.01.3

LNG

E&E Petroleum Products

RM bil.

Pakistan

Palm Oil

Chemicals & Chemical Products

Machinery, appliances & Parts

1.1

0.2 0.1

RM bil.

New ZealandCrudePetroleum

E&E Manufactures of Metal

1.6

0.3 0.1

RM bil. RM mil.

E&EWood Products Rubber

Products

51.1

39.736.0

Total Trade with Selected FTA Partners, 2005-2014 (January-June)

39.9

56.8

30.7

2.43.3

3.1 5.9

7.1 4.5

0.9 1.8 0.50

10

20

30

40

50

60

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014(Jan-June)

RM

billi

on

Korea Pakistan New Zealand Chile


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

Investments in Manufacturing Sector

21.6

30.5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Domestic Foreign

RM b

illion

2013

16.6

25.2

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Domestic Foreign

RM b

illion

2014 (Jan-May)

No. of Projects: 787Potential Employment: 92,988

No. of Projects: 349Potential Employment: 39,567

Projects Approved

Projects Approved by Major CountryRM million

2013 2014 (Jan-May)

3,591.9

3,017.7

1,717.0

4,522.3

0.9

131.0

9.6

8,903.4

4,421.1

4,123.4

3,237.3

681.1

488.9

460.0

Japan

PRC

Germany

Singapore

South Africa

Taiwan

India

Projects Approved by Major Industry

5.8

9.8

5.64.4

6.6

1.4

6.2

14.5

6.4 6.8

1.2 1.0 0.9

6.8

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

Chemicals &ChemicalProducts

E&E Basic MetalProducts

FoodManufacturing

TransportEquipment

Fabricated MetalProducts

PetroleumProducts (Incl.

Petrochemicals)

RM b

illion

2013 2014 (Jan-May)Source: Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA)

“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

MalayRM8.8 mil.

EnglishRM4.2 mil.

ChineseRM3.9

Combination of Languages

RM0.7 mil.

TotalRM17.6 mil.

MalayRM7.6 mil.

EnglishRM3.7 mil.

ChineseRM3.5 mil.

Combination of Languages

RM0.7 mil.

TotalRM15.5 mil.

Average Sales of Daily Newspapers in Malaysia by Language, January-May (2013/2014)

2013(Jan-May)

2014(Jan-May)

Source: Various Newspaper Companies

**

Note: * Refers to Sabah and Sarawak State

Malaysia-Registered Vacancies by Occupations, January-May 2014

Source: Ministry of Human Resources

Note: * Others include Managers, Technicians & Associate Professionals, Craft & Related Trade Workers and Skilled Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Workers

68.9%

72.7%

75.6%

67.9%

69.1%

15.5%

10.1%

8.4%

11.2%

11.7%

7.2%

8.3%

7.7%

9.1%

8.6%

3.3%

2.2%

2.4%

3.4%

4.6%

0.8%

1.8%

0.9%

1.6%

1.8%

4.3%

5.1%

5.0%

6.9%

4.3%

0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 120,000 140,000

Jan.

Feb.

Mar

April

May

2014

Numbers

Elementary occupations Plant and machine operators and assemblersService and sales workers ProfessionalsClerical support workers Others*

102,363

133,543

117,124

86,322

71,837


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

Source : http://www.gold.org/investments/statistics/gold_price_chart/

Source : Bank Negara, Malaysia

Silver

Gold

US$/MT

US$/grammeUS$/oz

Source : http://econ.worldbank.org-

Malaysian Ringgit Exchange Rate with Euro and Pound Sterling, January 2013-July 2014

Gold and Silver Prices, 3 January-1 August 2014

Aluminium, Nickel and Cooper Prices, January 2013-June 2014

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

Jan 13 Feb 13 Mar 13 Apr 13 May 13 Jun 13 Jul 13 Aug 13 Sep 13 Oct 13 Nov 13 Dec 13 Jan 14 Feb 14 Mar 14 Apr 14 May 14 Jun 14

Aluminum Copper Nickel

US$18,629

US$6,821

US$1,839

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

3 Jan 10 Jan 17 Jan 24 Jan 30 Jan 7 Feb 14 Feb 21 Feb 28 Feb 7 Mar 14 Mar 21 Mar 28 Mar 4 Apr 11 Apr 18 Apr 25 Apr 2 May 9 May 16 May 23 May 30 May 6 Jun 13 Jun 20 Jun 27 Jun 4 Jul 11 Jul 18 Jul 1 Aug

4.00

4.20

4.40

4.60

4.80

5.00

5.20

5.40

5.60

3.503.603.703.803.904.004.104.204.304.404.504.60

Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July

2013 2014

Euro (EUR) Pound Sterling (GBP)1 GBP = RM5.44

1 EUR = RM 4.32


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

Number and Value of Preferential Certificates of Origin (PCOs)

Source: Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Malaysia

Number of CertificatesValue of Preferential Certificates of Origin

AJCEP: ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (Implemented since 1 February 2009)

ACFTA: ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (Implemented since 1 July 2003) AKFTA: ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Agreement (Implemented since 1 July 2006)

AANZFTA: ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement(Implemented since 1 January 2010)

AIFTA: ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (Implemented since 1 January 2010)

ATIGA: ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (Implemented since 1 May 2010)

Value of Preferential Certificates of Origin

Number of Certificates

MICECA: Malaysia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (Implemented since 1 July 2011)

MNZFTA: Malaysia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (Implemented since 1 August 2010)MCFTA: Malaysia-Chile Free Trade Agreement (Implemented since 25 February 2012)

Number of Certificates

Notes: The preference giving countries under the GSP scheme are members of the Japan, Switzerland, the Russian Federation, Norway and Kazakhstan.

MPCEPA: Malaysia-Pakistan Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (Implemented since 1 January 2008)



MAFTA: Malaysia-Australia Free Trade Agreement (Implemented since 1 January 2013)

MJEPA: Malaysia-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (Implemented since 13 July 2006)

AANZFTA AIFTA AJCEP ATIGA ACFTA AKFTA

2 Jun 2014 815 590 203 4,854 1235 800

8 Jun 2014 785 539 236 3,870 1358 746

15 Jun 2014 787 505 243 4,068 1,266 840

22 Jun 2014 871 650 196 4,585 1,293 906

29 Jun 2014 683 476 220 4,344 1,127 713

6 Jul 2014 392 276 104 2,135 733 318

13 Jul 2014 780 552 199 4,444 1,089 806

20 Jul 2014 807 513 137 4,153 1,205 872

MICECA MNZFTA MCFTA MAFTA

2 Jun 2014 276 2 49 3718 Jun 2014 279 11 76 372

15 Jun 2014 252 0 35 29722 Jun 2014 243 6 321 32129 Jun 2014 296 3 60 2926 Jul 2014 133 3 32 158

13 Jul 2014 281 6 65 37620 Jul 2014 250 16 50 358

MJEPA MPCEPA GSP

2 Jun 2014 1,003 144 1698 Jun 2014 800 167 132

15 Jun 2014 837 125 10922 Jun 2014 791 136 14429 Jun 2014 752 154 1596 Jul 2014 409 54 55

13 Jul 2014 843 133 13020 Jul 2014 730 127 243

2 Jun 8 Jun 15 Jun 22 Jun 29 Jun 6 Jul 13 Jul 20 JulAANZFTA 78 74 69 83 57 48 74 67AIFTA 162 1,144 300 494 80 62 142 535AJCEP 99 78 77 59 69 48 81 30

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

RM m

illio

n

2 Jun 8 Jun 15 Jun 22 Jun 29 Jun 6 Jul 13 Jul 20 JulMICECA 45.95 35.47 50.72 30.03 49.21 22.05 45.95 35.63MNZFTA 0.07 0.16 0.00 0.40 0.14 0.06 0.11 0.32MCFTA 7.97 8.24 5.64 22.17 7.23 7.80 12.76 6.41MAFTA 29.93 25.01 28.40 22.17 27.34 11.60 24.25 29.89

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

RM m

illio

n

2 Jun 8 Jun 15 Jun 22 Jun 29 Jun 6 Jul 13 Jul 20 JulMICECA 45.95 35.47 50.72 30.03 49.21 22.05 45.95 35.63MNZFTA 0.07 0.16 0.00 0.40 0.14 0.06 0.11 0.32MCFTA 7.97 8.24 5.64 22.17 7.23 7.80 12.76 6.41MAFTA 29.93 25.01 28.40 22.17 27.34 11.60 24.25 29.89

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

RM

mill

ion

2 Jun 8 Jun 15 Jun 22 Jun 29 Jun 6 Jul 13 Jul 20 JulMJEPA 132 170 109 136 123 79 127 131MPCEPA 46 67 21 28 50 8 21 22GSP 19 17 17 19 27 14 25 26

0

50

100

150

200

250

RM m

illio

n


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

Crude Petroleum (1 August 2014)US$98.5 per bbl Crude Palm Oil

(1 August 2014)US$822.0 per MT

Lowest (US$ per bbl)

10 Jan 2014: 92.319 Apr 2013: 88.1

Highest

(US$ per bbl) 13 Jun 2014: 107.6

Sep 2013: 110.2

Highest

(US$ per MT)14 Mar 2014: 982.515 Nov 2013: 925.0

Lowest (US$ per MT)

1 Aug 2014: 822.0 4 Jan 2013: 800.0

1 August 2014 domestic prices for :1. Billets (per MT) : RM1,700 – RM1,750 2. Steel bars (per MT) : RM1,970 - RM2,120

Commodity Price Trends, 9 May-1 August 2014

Highest & Lowest Prices, 2013/2014

Commodity Prices

9 May 16 May 23 May 30 May 6 Jun 13 Jun 20 Jun 27 Jun 4 Jul 11 Jul 18 Jul 1 Aug Crude Petroleum/bbl 100.3 101.6 103.8 103.4 102.4 107.6 106.6 106.7 104.6 102.8 101.6 98.5 Rubber SMR 20/MT 1,674.0 1,723.5 1,725.0 1,695.0 1,660.5 1,685.0 1,736.0 1,792.5 1,747.0 1,687.0 1,671.5 1695.5 Cocoa SMC 2/MT 2,516.3 2,517.9 2,643.1 2,629.9 2,690.6 2,675.4 2,690.6 2,736.1 2,720.9 2,705.7 2,736.1 2,789.1 Crude Palm Oil/MT 900.5 915.8 913.6 913.6 898.5 906.0 893.0 856.3 848.8 849.5 868.0 867.0 Scrap Iron/MT 395.0 395.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 380.0 Raw Sugar/MT 368.8 394.5 384.0 364.8 364.5 365.3 381.0 390.5 371.5 367.5 366.0 354.3 Iron Ore/MT 150.0 150.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 140.0 Coal/MT 70.2 69.3 69.3 62.0 60.9 60.4 59.5 61.5 61.5 60.2 60.5 60.5

Crude Petroleum

Crude Palm Oil

Rubber SMR 20

Cocoa SMC 2

Scrap IronRaw Sugar

Coal 0.0

500.0

1,000.0

1,500.0

2,000.0

2,500.0

3,000.0

92.0

94.0

96.0

98.0

100.0

102.0

104.0

106.0

108.0

110.0

US

$/M

TUS

$/b

bl

Iron Ore

CommodityCrude

Petroleum (per bbl)

Crude Palm Oil (per MT)

Raw Sugar

(per MT)

Rubber SMR 20(per MT)

Cocoa SMC 2

(per MT)

Coal(per MT)

Scrap Iron HMS

(per MT)1 Aug 2014

(US$) 98.5 822.0 354.3 1,695.5 2,789.1 60.5 380.0 (high)370.0 (low)

% change* 3.0 4.8 3.2 1.4 1.9 unchanged unchangedunchanged

2013i 88.1 - 108.6 805.5 361.6 2,390.8 1,933.1 .. 485.62012i 77.7 - 109.5 1,000.4 473.8 952.5 2,128.9 .. 444.72011i 80.3 - 112.7 1,124.0 647.0 1,348.3 2,644.8 .. 491.0

Ministry of International Trade and Industry Malaysia, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, Malaysian Rubber Board, Malaysian Cocoa Board, Malaysian Iron and Steel Industry Federation, Bloomberg and Czarnikow Group

Notes: All figures have been rounded to the nearest decimal point * Refer to % change from the previous week’s price i Average price in the year except otherwise indicated

Source :

“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”


Russia Macroeconomic Indicators

Russia Trade Performance (2013)

Exports to the world : US$523.3 bil. Imports from the world : US$343.0 bil.Major export products:i) Fuels and mining productsii) Fuelsiii) ManufacturesMajor import products:

i) Manufactures ii) Machinery and transport equipment iii) Transport equipment

Sources : CIA World Factbook, International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Trade Atlas (WTA) and Department of Statistics, Malaysia

US Economic IndicatorsInflation

Rate(June 2014)

2.1%

Unemployment Rate

(June 2014)6.1%

Producer Price Index

(June 2014)

0.4(preliminary)

GDP(Q2 2014)

(advances estimated)4.0%

Source : MITI Washington

2013 GDP Growth 1.3% (US$2,118.0 bil.) GDP Per capita US$14,818.6 Inflation rate 6.8% Population 142.9 mil. persons Ethnic Composition

Russian 77.7%, Tatar 3.7%,

Ukrainian 1.4%, Others 17.2%

“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”


Strategic Planning, MITI


“DR

IVIN

G T

ransformation, P

OW

ERIN

G G

rowth”

Dear Readers,Kindly click the link below for any comments in this issue. MWB reserves the right to edit and to republish letters as reprints.

http://www.miti.gov.my/cms_matrix/form.jsp?formId=c1148fbf-c0a81573-3a2f3a2f-1380042c

Comments & Suggestions

mwb vol 300

Documents

asean community

asean solidarity

asean closer

asean chair

asean citivities

asean anniversary

formation of asean

peoplecentered asean