India Offers Great Opportunity For Malaysian Businesses, Says Najib

By Saraswathi Muniappan

NEW DELHI, Dec 21 (Bernama) -- India with its population of 1.2 billion people offers a great opportunity for Malaysian businesses, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.

This is more so with the conclusion of the agreement on services and investment between Asean and India, he said.

"We can see India as a country whose economic growth rate has been so rapid. They also exepect their growth rate can be raised further with the creation of a middle class with high purchasing power.

"So they will definitely look to Malaysia for tourism, education and medical tourism. It is certainly a bigger market for us," Najib told Malaysian journalists at the end of the Asean-India Commemorative Summit 2012 here Friday.

India's economy is expected to grow by 7.3 per cent next year, higher than the 6.5 per cent forecast for 2012.

Indian companies can also be invited to invest in Malaysia in sectors where they have the capability, such as pharmaceuticals, bio-technology and manufacturing, he said.

To date, Malaysia has approved 110 manufacturing projects with Indian investors involving US$1.19 billion in total investments.

Between January to October 2012, a total of 10 manufacturing projects with Indian participants were approved with investments worth US$259.8 million.

"We can still promote all these further. So I am optimistic and confident we can expand and enhance our relationship further in all aspects with India," he said.

Since 1998, India has been Malaysia's largest export destination in the South Asia region.

Bilateral trade between Malaysia and India for the 2002-2011 period has increased more then six-fold, he said, adding that the implementation of the Malaysia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement on July 1, 2011 has further boosted bilateral trade between the two countries.

Last year, total trade increased 32.7 per cent over 2010 to reach US$12.54 billion. Malaysia's exports rose 34.6 per cent from US$6.5 billion in 2010 to US$9.2 billion.

Malaysia's major exports to India in 2011 were electrical and electronic products, chemicals and chemical products, manufactures of metal and palm oil, while Malaysia's main imports from India were chemicals and chemical products, manufactures of meal and meat.

From January to October 2012, Malaysia's exports to India totalled US$7.7 billion, while imports were US$3.3 billion.

Asked if the Asean-India agreement on services and investment should be hastened, he said: "I think that is the intention. Hopefully when we prepare the legal document it won't take too long. The important thing is the spirit and the principle that we want to settle.

"We should move on and make it implementable by the fourth quarter of next year."

Asean-India represents a huge market of 1.8 billion people with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of US$3.8 trillion.

Trade between Asean and India rose by 43 per cent compared with 2010 to reach US$74.9 billion in 2011. The target is to push to US$100 billion by 2015.