Malaysia, a premier investment hub in Asia, says expert

KUALA LUMPUR: The world has been shaken by recent events, causing concern about the direction in which the global capital markets are heading.

However, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and other central banks have decided to continue raising rates, with a change in communication language that may pivot investors towards areas such as Amazon or Malaysia.

Patrick Chang, Principal Southeast Asia’s Chief Investment Officer for Equities, views Asia as a strong location, and advocates for asset allocation to buy equities and fixed income.

"Malaysia is a good place to invest in 2023," he said.

"We have a lot of foreign direct investments coming in and that could be a tailwind for the economy," he adds, stating that the Malaysian government is aggressively promoting investment and reinvigorating direct domestic investment.

The rebranding of the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) with the addition of the word 'investment' into it is a good signal to the market that they are serious about growing the economy domestically. MITI was previously known as Ministry of International Trade and Industry.

"For instance, the recent investment commitment of RM170 million by China could further boost the economy, especially towards the growth of the local manufacturing and services sector," he added in an interview on Astro AWANI's program, Notepad with Ibrahim Sani on Wednesday.

Despite the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the US and China, Chang remains optimistic about the momentum in Asia, particularly in the Korean and Taiwanese markets, where there has been a significant increase in the market and economy activity, driven by pent-up demand in the chip business.

In response, several countries, including Malaysia are looking to reduce their dependence on the dollar and instead conduct settlements in China's renminbi or other currencies that are commonly used between the transacting countries.

However, Chang suggests that investors should focus on their strategy moving forward instead of worrying about market volatility.