Malaysia set to gain over US$100 billion in trade boost from BRI

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia ranks among the top three trade partners in China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), with trade surpassing US$100 billion in the first half of this year.

Chinese Embassy Minister Counsellor Lin Shiguang highlighted the strong partnership, noting the deep mutual trust, robust economic ties, and successful cooperation between China and Malaysia.

"According to the latest data, in the first half of this year, among the 63 countries jointly building the BRI, three countries had trade volume with China exceeding US$100 billion, including Malaysia.

"The bilateral trade volume reached US$100.233 billion, a year-on-year increase of 10.6 per cent," he said at the "Symposium of Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC)" in Kuala Lumpur recently.

The symposium hosted by the Malaysia-China Friendship Association and the Malaysia Friends of Silk Road Club to discuss the outcomes and implications of the Third Plenary Session in Beijing concluded on July 18.

The symposium has brought together esteemed leaders and scholars to explore the future of China-Malaysia relations and the shared opportunities arising from China's modernisation path.

Lin said China and Malaysia are important representatives of developing countries and emerging economies in Asia, sharing similar development concepts and values, and are fellow travellers on the path of development.

"The Chinese path to modernisation has received the attention, research, and support of many Malaysian friends.

The BRI, the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilisation Initiative proposed by China have been recognised by all sectors of Malaysia.

"I believe that Chinese path to modernisation brings opportunities, confidence and win-win results to the world. The joint development of China and Malaysia will inject more stable positive energy into the region and the world economy," he said.

On the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, Lin said the session emphasised that the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform is to "continue to improve and develop the socialist system with Chinese characteristics and promote the modernisation of the national governance system and governance capacity."

"We can clearly see again that opening up is a distinctive symbol of the Chinese path to modernisation. For the world, the plenary session continues to send a clear signal to expand high-level openness to the outside world.

"It is not only an important window for accurately understanding China, high-quality development of China, and high-level opening up to the outside world, but it also allows the outside world to experience the huge opportunities brought by promoting Chinese-style modernisation globally," he said.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Malaysia Friends of Silk Road Club Ng Chin Long said the symposium seeks to bridge the understanding gap and provide valuable insights into the outcomes of the high-level meeting.

"This event is not merely an academic exercise; it is a platform for dialogue, understanding, and collaboration.

"By bringing together scholars, think tanks, political leaders, and young leaders from Malaysia, we aim to foster a deeper comprehension of China's evolving policies and their implications for our region. This knowledge will empower us to navigate the changes and leverage the opportunities that arise, strengthening the ties between our two nations," he said.

-- BERNAMA

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