KUALA LUMPUR, May 8 — The United States has insisted on bilateral talks with Asean’s individual members and refused to negotiate with it as a bloc on its tariffs, said the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti).
Miti’s bilateral economic and trade relations drector Raveendran Nair said Malaysia, Asean’s third-largest economy, has taken an active role in the discussions, having sent a ministerial delegation to Washington on April 24.
“We have to negotiate from a bilateral perspective. If we go as a bloc, they say you’re ganging up against the US. We have no choice.
“Furthermore, even though Asean is a bloc, member countries have different interests. They have different products and tariff rates, so they have to negotiate individually,” he said during the panel discussion at the Hong Leong Bank forum themed “Beyond the Headlines on US Tariffs: What’s Next for Malaysian Businesses and the Global Economy”.
In Washington, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz led a delegation to a high-level meeting with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on addressing the tariffs.
During the meeting, Tengku Zafrul stressed the importance of continuous discussions and reiterated Malaysia’s openness to find constructive solutions in addressing US concerns.
Raveendran said Malaysia raised concerns about the impact of tariffs on US-owned companies operating in Malaysia, especially in the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector.
“For the E&E sector, we explained that the majority of the companies are US companies, so if you (US) impose the tariff, that means you are imposing tariffs on your own companies in Malaysia, which to a certain extent they do understand, but they go back to ‘Make America Great Again’.
“They want the manufacturers to go back and invest in the US. But we did explain to them that it’s not that easy. It will have a huge impact on the supply chain,” he said.
He added that Lutnick was open for the talks but Miti was unable to disclose any contents of the negotiations due to the non-disclosure agreement.
“Negotiation is ongoing, so whatever the final decisions will go back to the government. We are just negotiating. We are not making any decisions. The decision will be made by the government. As of now, it’s still at the initial stage.
“We are looking forward to a positive outcome. However, (Lutnick) did mention that most probably the 10 per cent tariff will remain for the entire world,” he said.
Meanwhile, Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia’s (Samenta) chairman of international trade Eugene Tan expressed deep concern over the impact of renewed US tariff threats, both to companies that export directly or indirectly to the US market.
“Those exporting to the US are extremely worried, as the tariffs represent a direct cost and for those that do not directly export to US, the concern is much more on the economic outlook of the country and how this will play a part in a slowdown and the possibility of dumping of goods into Malaysia from China,” he said.
Tan said the government needs to implement protective measures for local industries, including the services and retail sectors that face market disruptions and aggressive foreign competition.
While the government has announced several initiatives for the manufacturing sector, Tan said Samenta are concerned that the services sector is being overlooked despite facing similar cuts from US clients.
— Bernama
