KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is shifting gears to become Southeast Asia’s hub for smart and sustainable mobility, with a renewed focus on electric vehicles (EVs), artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced manufacturing, says Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz. “AI is redefining the way vehicles are designed, manufactured, and driven,” said Tengku Zafrul...
KUALA LUMPUR: The minimum wage policy will be expanded to cover graduates and semi-skilled workers, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. The Prime Minister said this will include Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) graduates classified under Masco code 8 and above. “This effort is aimed at ensuring fair wages that reflect the qualifications and skills of...
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's positive trade performance in April 2025 was underpinned by a double-digit expansion in exports, led by a rebound in shipments to Asean and China, as well as a surge in trade with the US. According to the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (Miti), the country's exports grew 16.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM133.56bil...
US President Donald Trump said he’s asked Apple Inc’s Tim Cook to stop building plants in India, taking aim at the iPhone maker’s plans to diversify its manufacturing beyond China. "I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday,” Trump said of his conversation with the Apple chief executive officer in Qatar, where he’s on a...
U.S. trade officials finalized steep tariff levels on most solar cells from Southeast Asia, a key step toward wrapping up a year-old trade case in which American manufacturers accused Chinese companies of flooding the market with unfairly cheap goods. The case was brought last year by Korea's Hanwha Qcells , Arizona-based First Solar Inc and several...
Urgent need for stricter safety regulations to prevent such incidents, says DOSH PETALING JAYA: Occupational injury involving the hand, including the loss and permanent disablement of fingers, has been rising across various industries nationwide. This prompted the Occupational Safety and Health Department (DOSH) to step in to address the matter amid growing concerns. DOSH deputy director-general (occupational safety)...
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s manufacturing sector sales value improved 4.7 per cent to RM153.1 billion in February 2025 (January 2025: 3.5 per cent), according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). Chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the growth in sales value in February 2025 was mainly driven by the food, beverages and tobacco sub-sector, which recorded a favourable growth...
KUALA LUMPUR: The Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) has announced that the suspension of the 80:20 employment ratio requirement for the manufacturing sector will continue until the Multi-Tiered Levy Mechanism (MTLM) is fully implemented. The 80:20 policy refers to the employment condition that mandates a ratio of 80% local workers and 20% foreign workers in...
KUALA LUMPUR: The seasonally adjusted S&P Global Malaysia manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to 49.0 in April from 48.4 in March, indicating a softer downturn in the country's manufacturing sector. "The latest PMI data suggests that GDP growth is running at a slightly improved rate than that seen at the end of 2023, as well...
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah has done well in attracting domestic and foreign investments with some RM10.2bil recorded from January to September this year, says Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor. The Chief Minister said these investments had created 891 jobs through 99 projects. He said this represented 13 projects from the manufacturing sector, seven from the primary sector (mining, plantation...
