KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 12): The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry’s (Miti) one-day investment mission to Singapore has yielded RM2.8 billion of committed foreign direct investments (FDIs) from two companies.

In a statement on Friday, its minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said Equinix Inc helps organisations fast-track competitive advantage across digital enablers including cloud, networking, storage, computing and software.

The global digital infrastructure company has 52 data centres across 13 cities in the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, South Korea and Singapore. 

Equinix plans to open data centres in Johor and Kuala Lumpur to provide an interconnected platform offering access to international and regional networks connecting the Asia-Pacific, he said.

Tengku Zafrul also met representatives of a global food manufacturing company with a presence in Malaysia.

The company plans to expand and diversify its product portfolio and will set up a facility with an advanced manufacturing line, powered by Industry 4.0 enablers such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics for its integrated food ingredients production.

“These companies have chosen Malaysia to either establish or expand their businesses. The RM2.8 billion committed FDIs are yet another endorsement of Malaysia’s efforts to ease the investor’s journey, and facilitate the realisation of their investments.

“Miti, together with its agency, the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida), will be more strategic in attracting the right investments from the increased inflows into Asean. These investments must not only grow our economy but must also develop our small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and create jobs for our people,” he said.

Miti said Singapore viewed Malaysia as a viable investment destination due to various factors, including its rule of law, strategic regional location, trainable workforce, and crucial position in many regional and global supply chains.

It noted that between January and September 2023, RM20.4 billion in investment projects from Singapore were approved, making it the second-largest FDI source.

The investment mission is an important milestone to realise Malaysia’s goal to become a hi-tech, global innovation hub with a resilient and sustainable investment ecosystem, the statement said.

Read also:
Malaysia to continue wooing global electric vehicle brands, says Zafrul 
Malaysia's economy to benefit from higher demand for semiconductors, tourism in 2024, says Zafrul 
Malaysia signs MOU with Singapore to formalise cooperation on Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone 
Agreement finalising Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone to be signed by year end — state exco member