KUALA LUMPUR, April 29 – The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) has appointed its Deputy Secretary-General (Trade), Mastura Ahmad Mustafa, as Malaysia’s chief negotiator for upcoming formal tariff discussions with the United States.
According to MITI Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, the US has appointed one of its assistant trade representatives to lead its side of the negotiations. Both parties have agreed to begin formal talks once approval is granted by Malaysia’s Cabinet.
“We are now waiting for Cabinet approval before proceeding. The US side has agreed to engage, and both the US Trade Representative (USTR) and the Secretary of Commerce are eager to move forward,”
said Tengku Zafrul at MITI’s open house event.
Key areas of negotiation include tariff reductions, easing of non-tariff barriers — especially in the agriculture sector — and addressing the current US$25 billion trade surplus Malaysia maintains with the US. The minister highlighted that Malaysia has reduced its trade surplus with the US from over US$40 billion to the current level over the past four years.
Earlier in April, the US implemented increased tariffs of 24% on imports from around 60 countries, including Malaysia. However, a 90-day pause was granted to allow for trade negotiations.
Tengku Zafrul led a Malaysian delegation to Washington on April 24 to meet with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and USTR Jamieson Greer. The outcomes of these initial discussions will be reviewed at the National Geoeconomic Command Centre (NGCC) meeting chaired by the Prime Minister.
The minister also noted that both sides have agreed to expand discussions to cover economic security matters, including technology safeguards and intellectual property enforcement. The US has expressed concerns over the potential for sensitive technology produced or developed in Malaysia to fall into undesirable hands. A proposed technology safeguard agreement is among the measures being considered.
On the recent US tariff actions against some Malaysian and Chinese solar panel exporters, Tengku Zafrul clarified that these apply only to non-compliant firms.
“We assisted the companies in presenting their defence, but some explanations were not accepted. It is now up to the affected firms to decide whether to continue exporting to the US or revise their strategies,”
he said.
He also confirmed that Malaysia has not requested an extension of the 90-day pause and intends to work within the current timeframe.
–Bernama
