MANUFACTURING SECTOR GROWTH TO BE DRIVEN BY SOLAR AND MEDICAL DEVICE INDUSTRIES

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 (Bernama) -- The manufacturing sector in Malaysia is
expected to be driven by higher value-added activities, with new growth
initiatives in the solar and medical device industries.

In this regard, further tax and non-tax incentives will be provided to
encourage manufacturers to move up the value chain, says the Treasury in the
2010/2011 Economic Report released here on Friday.

The new initiatives would be important drivers of the growth initiatives
apart from helping to diversify the manufacturing base and contributing to the
resilience of the sector.

The report said the solar and medical device industries had significant
upside potential and opportunities for future development.

It has attracted significant inflows of foreign direct investments and
spin offs from the semi-conductor industry and multinational corporations
business where Malaysia has a strong base and expertise.

Although the solar industry is relatively new to Malaysia, it is
concentrated among selected world-class multinational players, and has
experienced tremendous growth recently.

According to the report, Malaysia has shown substantial progress in claiming
market share for wafer, cell and module production, and is expected to supply 10
per cent of these components globally.

The country has also established itself as an important global player in
the photovoltaic (PV) industry, thus attracting several global players in PV
manufacturing since 2008.

Meanwhile, the medical device industry is more mature and heterogeneous,
comprising many home-grown local firms with varying degrees of internal
capability and external competitiveness.

For the past five years, medical device companies have been growing at a
faster rate than pharmaceutical companies globally.
-- BERNAMA