Friday 7 October 2022
Thursday 6 October 2022
Wong Hon Wai Ask About The Status And Progress Of The CPTPP
The Edge Markets / October 06, 2022
CPTPP will come into effect for Malaysia on Nov 29, says Azmin
Azmin says that besides Malaysia, all other member countries of the CPTPP do not have a transition period for their earnings threshold value. (Photo by Mohd Suhaimi Mohamed Yusuf/The Edge)
KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 6): The ratified Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) will come into effect for Malaysia on Nov 29, according to International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali.
The senior minister said in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (Oct 6) that all legal amendments related to the CPTPP have been completed.
“I want to state here that some exceptions and also flexibility related to the rights of Bumiputera and local players under the CPTPP have been obtained,” he said.
He added that besides Malaysia, all other member countries of the CPTPP do not have a transition period for their earnings threshold value.
“And this is the success we have achieved, may I report here, as the transition period for Malaysia for the service sector is nine years. For the goods sector, it's seven years, and for the construction sector, it's 20 years,” Azmin said.
“Since the transition period is so long, the ministry has discussed with the Ministry of Finance to see what specific modules to prepare local players, especially Bumiputeras, to be ready to participate in the CPTPP.”
He said that the ministries are also engaging with the Chamber of Commerce to work on the modules.
“The commitment of Malaysia related to this government procurement is limited to the federal level only. It does not involve the states.
"The state level has already been excluded from the scope of government procurement, meaning that state governments can continue their existing procurement policy without any changes even though Malaysia has ratified and enforced the CPTPP,” he explained.
Azmin was replying to Bukit Bendera Member of Parliament Wong Hon Wai and Jempol MP Datuk Seri Mohd Salim Sharif, who had asked about the status and progress of the CPTPP.
In regard to the progress for other free trade agreements (FTAs), Azmin said that negotiations on the Malaysia-European Union Free Trade Agreement (MEUFTA) may resume.
“Through a meeting with the EU in July, both parties have agreed to hold a stocktaking meeting in mid-October to determine the direction of the negotiations,” Azmin said.
He said that the negotiations have been delayed since 2012, following the failure for both parties to reach an agreement on sensitive issues, such as government procurement, Bumiputera policy and intellectual property rights.
In addition, he said Malaysia is also actively involved in negotiations to upgrade the existing regional FTAs for the Asean-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA), the Asean-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA), and the Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).
“The upgrade of these agreements, among others, involves the improvement of certain chapters, including additional liberalisation for the goods and services sector, and the proposed introduction of new provisions related to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs),” he said.
“It also involves trade and sustainable development, government procurement, digitisation and automation of customs procedures, as well as other initiatives related to green technology and the digital economy.”
He said the agreements being negotiated are expected to provide additional benefits to the business community, including MSMEs.
The negotiations also aim to ensure that these agreements remain relevant and are able to address the challenges of an uncertain global economic environment, Azmin said.
https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/cptpp-will-come-effect-malaysia-nov-29-says-azmin
Wednesday 5 October 2022
Wong Had Wanted To Know The Measures Being Taken By The Government Through Bank Negara To Mitigate The Risks Involving Foreign Currency Exchange Rates
The Star / 05 Oct 2022
We’re not headed towards a currency crisis, says Finance Minister
KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia will not take any drastic intervention to manage the value of the ringgit, says Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.
“Although Bank Negara is not targeting any exchange rate, it is striving so that there will be no drastic or extreme change to the value of the ringgit.
“This action will assist businesses to plan, while allowing for better implementation of business decisions and investments,” he said in reply to a question by Wong Hon Wai (PH-Bukit Bendera) in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
Wong had wanted to know the measures being taken by the government through Bank Negara to mitigate the risks involving foreign currency exchange rates.
He said that one US dollar was worth RM2.122 during the 1998 Asian Financial Crisis, but the ringgit is now trading at 4.651 to the dollar currently.
Tengku Zafrul said the nation’s economic fundamentals remained positive despite the challenges to the global economy brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.
He cited the introduction of dynamic hedging as an example of reducing risks for those in the currency market and business.
He added that this included attracting investors to the local bond market while improving the foreign currency exchange.
“Daily foreign exchange transactions continued to increase to an average of US$13.3bil to date, compared with US$11.3bil in 2021, based on two-way transactions.”
Tengku Zafrul also said that the Malaysian economy is not headed for a crisis because the situation during the 1997/98 Asian Financial Crisis was different.
“Our currency dropped almost 54% in 1997, with the lowest exchange rate hitting RM4.88 to the dollar.
“The nation’s share market was also badly affected, where the then Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange fell by some 800 points in just two months from 1,077 in June 1997 to 262.7 in September,” he said, describing it as the worst economic crisis ever faced by the nation, resulting in 102,000 Malaysians losing their jobs.
He noted that Bank Negara had also raised the interest rate to 11% to overcome the ringgit’s devaluation and to control inflation.
He said the situation is different now as the nation’s economy is more diversified and resilient.
“To date, our permanent account remains positive, with a total of RM3bil in the first quarter and RM4.4bil for the second quarter.
“As such, although we are facing some challenges due to external factors beyond the control of the government, our nation isn’t facing or headed towards an economic or currency crisis,” he said, adding that several other nations are also facing economic challenges due to current global events.
Monday 3 October 2022
Sunday 25 September 2022
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