China a good source of FDI, business community told
KUCHING: The local business community must work closely with the state government which is now striving to attract more foreign direct investment (FDI) from China.
Second Finance Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh said this is in view of China’s new strategy of ‘One Belt, One Road’ through which the country aims to set up a new global financial order by investing more in developing countries.
Given that its economic growth rate has slowed down from as high as 9.5 per cent to 6.5 percent in the last two years, China is also seeking to divert its internal investments to foreign countries in order to maintain its annual growth rate, Wong added.
“With Sarawak’s political stability, friendly and open-minded environment as well as its large Chinese population that still speak Mandarin, the state has been greatly favoured by the mainland Chinese businessmen,” Wong told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He cited the recent visit of Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg to China, the first he made as the Chief Minister, as opening the way for the local business community to look to China for business.
“The government under the chief minister and other ministers such as Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan and myself has been working hard to lure investment from China.
“There are many areas which we can invite collaboration or investment from China. The local business community must reap the opportunities and try to think of ways to work with China. The state government will definitely give you all the support,” said Wong.
He added that FDI will not only boost the state’s economy as it will also trigger technology and knowhow transfer.
“Mainland Chinese investment into Sarawak has registered a continuous remarkable growth for the last few years and I foresee an even faster growth with more aggressive private sector involvement.
“We have all that are needed to lure the mainland Chinese to come over to invest. Local business communities must work closely with the government to reap the opportunity to tap into China’s resources,” said Wong.
Wong was responding to the recent report of Singapore Financial Times which stated that Malaysia had been rising as a favoured destination for mainland Chinese investors in the property sector, overtaking Singapore.
The report had said that mainland Chinese had been Malaysia’s top property investors, over the last three years the sector registered completed transactions of RM9.25 billion.
In a recent function in Miri, Abang Johari expressed the state’s policy to attract more investments from China.
He said Malaysia had gotten some RM160 billion in FDIs from China and he had foreseen Sarawak securing at least 20 per cent of it, which was about RM32 billion.