3 April 2025 – On behalf of the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM), with over 110,000 members across 13 states and the Federal Territories, we deeply regret the US decision to impose reciprocal tariffs averaging 24% on Malaysia with effect on 9 April 2025 given its disruption to bilateral trade between two countries, and harmful to businesses and exports.
We question how the United States Trade Representative derived that Malaysia currently has imposed an average tariff of 47% charged on the US goods, including currency manipulation and trade barriers. Malaysia was removed from the US Treasury department monitoring list for currency manipulation as of November 2024.
We are concerned that the tariff actions and retaliation among major economies could spark a global trade war that can disrupt supply chains, slow global economic growth, and lead to increased costs for consumers and businesses.
The United States and Malaysia have enjoyed a mutually beneficial trade relationship for decades. In 2024, the US was the third largest trading partner of Malaysia, accounting for 11.3% of Malaysia’s total trade. It was Malaysia’s second largest exports destination (13.2% share); and was Malaysia’s third largest importer (9.2% share).
In February 2025, the US has displaced China as Malaysia’s largest exports market (14.8% share). Overall, the US was the third largest foreign investor in all economic sectors with a total approved investment of RM29.7 billion or 17.4% of total foreign investment in 2024.
President of ACCCIM Datuk Ng Yih Pyng said that these unnecessary and unreasonable tariffs will impact on domestic businesses and exporters, hurting Malaysia-US bilateral relationship. The chamber calls for a more collaborative approach to address the trade imbalance, emphasizing engagement and seeking reasonable solutions through consultations and joint efforts.
The challenges ahead are daunting for our businesses. The ACCCIM will continue to work collaboratively with the Government in developing strategies to mitigate the impact of tariffs. Businesses are seeking financial support and capacity building development programs in finding alternative suppliers, expanding into new markets beyond the US and encouraging domestic trade and production.
President Datuk Ng urges businesses to have better understanding of tariffs implications, stay agile, plan forward, manage costs, and explore opportunities to diversify their markets.
In addition to leveraging to existing bilateral and multilateral trade arrangements (RCEP, CPTPP and China-ASEAN FTA) to expand trade, the Government has to speed up the Malaysia-European Union Free Trade Agreement (MEUFTA) negotiation, the Gulf Cooperation Council – Malaysia Free Trade Agreement, and consider to negotiate a Free Trade Agreement with the US to soften the impact of tariffs.
