RCEP Allows More Investment And Market Access For Malaysian Companies In Indonesia

KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 (Bernama) -- The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement would allow more investment and market access for Malaysian companies in Indonesia. Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) Jakarta trade commissioner Har Man Ahmad said Malaysia’s level of investment can increase by 22 per cent and grow the amount of investment coming into the Indonesian market. “Malaysia is the ninth-largest trading partner as well as the seventh-largest source of import in the world for Indonesia. Major products that are being exported include commodities such as petroleum, palm oil as well as machinery and appliances part to support Indonesia’s manufacturing activities. “Once RCEP is ratified and implemented in Indonesia, it will bring a lot of opportunities for major sectors such as the automotive and other consumer goods and will be able to give its utmost benefit in terms of market access,” he said during the sixth panel session on the last day of eNational Export Day (eNED) 2021 Thursday. Har Man noted that Indonesia is also trying to reduce its regional tariff barriers and this would enable Malaysian companies’ investment process in the country to speed up. The RCEP is the world’s biggest free trade agreement (FTA) by grouping together 10 ASEAN members – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, including five of ASEAN’s existing FTA partners – Japan, China, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. To date, countries such as Singapore, Thailand, China and Japan have ratified the RCEP agreement while Malaysia is expected to ratify it by the end of the year or the latest by the first quarter of 2022. Altogether, 15 members of RCEP countries have an estimated gross domestic product (GDP) of US$24.8 trillion (RM104.16 trillion) or 28.9 per cent of the world’s GDP and making up 29.7 per cent of the world’s population. -- BERNAMA