Lim: Previous admin to blame for lower FDIs
PUTRAJAYA: The figures quoted by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak when questioning the amount of foreign direct investment ( FDI) recently referred to FDI inflows that had been realised, said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.
He said the amount was recorded in the ‘ Balance of Payments’ document issued by the Department of Statistics, Malaysia.
“The figure was a followup indicator and this means that the lower and decreasing figures ref lected the previous administration’s efforts prior to the power transition,” said Lim in a statement yesterday.
On Dec 1, Lim was reported as saying that the nation’s FDI had almost quadrupled to RM49 billion for the first nine months of this year compared with the same period last year.
Najib, via a posting on his Facebook page, questioned Lim’s announcement, claiming that official reports on FDI from Bank Negara Malaysia and the Statistics Department stated that FDI had decreased drastically during the period.
In a statement yesterday, Lim said the official figures from the Malaysian Investment Development Authority ( Mida) showed that approved FDIs for the manufacturing sector had risen by RM35 billion, or 250 per cent, to RM49 billion in the first nine months of this year from RM14 billion in the corresponding period last year.
“The approved FDIs were investments by international companies, encompassing various manufacturing industries,” he said. Investments from China accounted for 32 per cent of total approved FDIs in that period, followed by investments from Indonesia (18.4 per cent), the Netherlands (17 per cent), the United States ( 6.4 per cent), South Korea (5.0 per cent), Japan (4.3 per cent) and Singapore (2.5 per cent).
Lim said the amount of approved FDIs in the manufacturing sector from May to September 2018 had increased to RM35 billion compared with RM7.3 billion recorded during the same period last year.
“The significant rise proves the high confidence among foreign investors in Malaysia, especially with the RM27.7 billion, or 379 per cent, increase in approved FDIs in the sector after the peaceful power transition on May 9,” he said.
Lim said the amount had not included recently- approved FDIs in the sector, such as the RM1.5 billion investment to be made over a five-year period by NASDAQ- listed Micron Technology Inc to build a solidstate drive ( SSD) assembly and testing centre in Batu Kawan, Penang.
He said Mida’s report was an initial indicator of potential investments in the sector.
“The RM49 billion approved FDIs will be taken into account in the future in the ‘ Balance of Payments’ document when the FDI amount is realised,” he said.
He said the total amount of approved FDIs in the manufacturing sector would be progressively realised according to the construction schedule of manufacturing facilities which could take up to two years.