Kuala Lumpur, May 5 – The Third Joint Trade Committee (JTC) Meeting between Malaysia and Kazakhstan was held today in Kuala Lumpur. Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan, the Second Minister of International Trade and Industry jointly co-chaired this meeting with Ruslan Dalenov, the First Vice Minister of National Economy, Republic of Kazakhstan.
The Malaysia-Kazakhstan JTC is a platform to strengthen trade and investment ties between Malaysia and Kazakhstan. During this meeting, among others, both ministers exchanged their views on the bilateral trade and investment performance, regional economic developments and ways to forge better cooperation.
The meeting also agreed on eleven (11) areas of cooperation to enhance bilateral ties as well as provide opportunities for greater interactions between government authorities and the business communities of Malaysia and Kazakhstan. These include Information and Communication Technology, Islamic Banking and Financial Services, Tourism, Small Medium Entreprise (SME) and Higher Education.
Kazakhstan is Malaysia’s 4th largest trading partner among the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries. In 2016, total trade with Kazakhstan rose by 36.1% to reach RM203.58 million (US$49.22 million). Our largest export item to Kazakhstan is coffee-based preparations (Other Agricultures) while the two biggest imports from Kazakhstan are zinc and television components.
There is also a wide range of business opportunities between the two countries, especially in the manufacturing sectors including food products, production of electrical and electronic components and automotive spare parts, among others.