KUALA LUMPUR, April 4 — US investments in Malaysia are on an upward trajectory with the American companies being heavily involved in different key economic sectors in Malaysia, including the electrical and electronics and healthcare. 

American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, Siobhan Das, said the investments from the US companies were in sync with the types of industries that Malaysia aimed to attract.

"I do not think that investments from the US have diminished. They may be shifting in what are they doing, in terms of what are they bringing in. I think that is also according to what the Malaysian government has wanted as well.

"I think the American investors that are coming in are looking at Malaysia to raise the value add that they are bringing in. You will see a lot of companies leaving but only to make room for the higher value-added investments to come in,” she said.

Das was speaking to Bernama on the sidelines of Asia Pacific Council of American Chamber of Commerce (APCAC) 2018 Business Summit here today.

Last month, the Malaysian Investment Development Authority announced it was targeting to achieve about RM200 billion worth of approved investments in the manufacturing, services and primary sectors for this year.

Some RM80 billion of the said target will be for the manufacturing and manufacturing-related services sectors, including investments from the setting up of 12 additional companies that will set up their principal hubs in Malaysia.

From 1980 to June 2017, a total of 1,161 manufacturing projects with the participation of US companies were approved with investments valued at RM95.64 billion.

On whether the US-China trade war posed a risk to the country’s business environment, Das said, investments would continue to flow into the country if Malaysia continued to provide the right environment. 

"Businesses do like certainty but they do not shy away from managing uncertainty. That is what businesses do. They take and address risks and assess what can be done on a daily basis.

"I think that Malaysia has done a fantastic job to-date. We got great investments still coming in. I think we are not hearing sufficient good stories on what are actually happening on the ground,” she added. — Bernama