Malaysia will not enter into a trade agreement with the United States simply for the sake of striking a deal, but only if the terms are clearly beneficial to the country, said Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
“If we can reach a deal that on balance benefits Malaysia, we’ll say yes. But if the deal does not benefit Malaysia, we should not have a deal. We have to be firm on that,” he said during a press conference at Menara MITI yesterday.
Zafrul added that negotiations must not be approached with the intention of agreeing to everything.
He also stressed that Malaysia’s negotiation strategy is rooted in national interest and that it must protect sovereign policy space.
“We must be ready that there are areas where we cannot compromise. It is our country – they need to protect us all.”
The minister said Malaysia is entering talks from a relatively strong position, pointing to a low applied tariff rate on US goods at just 5.6 per cent, and a trade surplus that is not as significant as other countries like Vietnam.
He also described the US-imposed 1 August deadline as a positive development, as it gives Malaysia additional time to continue engagement before any tariffs take full effect.
“Otherwise, today we would already be paying 25 per cent,” he said. His press conference was held following Washington’s recent announcement of a 25 per cent blanket tariff on Malaysian goods entering the US, up from the 24 per cent rate imposed in April.
At the same press conference, Zafrul said Malaysia aims to secure export access, modernise the economy and protect long-term livelihoods.
He said digital tax, halal certification and government procurement remain non-negotiable, while talks also cover economic security, US-made purchases and investment flows – despite a shrinking trade imbalance since 2019.
This article originally appeared on Scoop.my.