KUALA LUMPUR: Japanese companies are increasing investments in Malaysia, despite concerns of high labour and energy costs, says Japanese Chamber of Trade and Industry Malaysia (Jactim) president Shuichi Yoshida.

"They are quite optimistic on Malaysia's growth. New investments will consider the transformation taking place currently, coupled with the fact that Malaysia is now considered an upper middle-income country," he told Business Times, here, recently.

According to Yoshida, the companies are looking for business partnerships, especially in the manufacturing of supply parts for the production of television and video equipment.

He said they are interested to invest in the halal and services sectors, as well as railway and power plant construction. Japan is the top foreign investor in Malaysia with some 1,400 companies operating as investments in the manufacturing sector have reached US$22.2 billion (RM73.2 billion).

They have been investing in Malaysia since the 1960s, especially in the automotive and electrical and electronics sectors. According to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida), Japan emerged as the largest foreign direct investor in Malaysia with an investment of RM26.3 billion between 2009 and August 2013.

Some of the major players include Mitsubishi, Honda, Daihatsu, Nissan, Mitsui, Marubeni, Panasonic, Toshiba, Sharp and Taisei. Mida has said that Japanese electronics and ceramics producer Ibiden Co Ltd is ramping up production at its second building in Penang Science Park by investing RM1.3 billion this year.

Yoshida is calling on Malaysian companies to invest in three key sectors in Japan - automotive, construction and services. He said investments can be made directly or Malaysians can also form joint ventures with the locals to strengthen their position in the marketplace.

"Almost all indices show a recovery in Japan. The yen has depreciated against the United States dollar and we expect the economy to recover further this year with more investments flowing in," he said.

By btimes.com.my

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