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Johor out to attract more US and Chinese investors

KOTA ISKANDAR: Johor is positioning itself to attract more US and Chinese investors.

A delegation from the state government would be heading to the United States this month as part of a trade and investment mission, said International Trade, Investment and Utility Committee chairman Jimmy Puah Wee Tse.

“We want to attract investors from the US who showed interest in moving their business operations from China to Asian countries, especially Malaysia and in particular Johor.

“It is going positively,” he told Chen Kah Eng (PH-Stulang), Datuk Hasni Mohammad (BN-Benut) and Chew Chong Sin (PH-Mengkibol) at the Johor state assembly yesterday.

Puah said the trade tension between the United States and China did not only have an impact on global trade and growth but also affected supply chain, businesses and jobs.

He said the negative impact from the trade war was expected to increase the cost of doing business as well as affecting investors confidence, among others.

Puah also noted that the United States contributed 20% to the global economy and China at 16%.

He said that many Chinese companies affected by the trade war had conducted market studies and wanted to move their businesses and factories to the Asean region, especially Malaysia.

The state government, he said, was confident that its three trade missions to China held in March, April and May would see results by the end of this year.

“(From January) until March, China’s investment value into Johor is RM718mil where we are the highest investment recipient from China in Malaysia.

“This is very positive. Such an investment trend is able to give a huge impact towards foreign investment climate especially from China,” he said.

Source: TheStar