Austria Aims To Woo More Malaysian Firms

By Nik Nurfaqih Nik Wil KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6 (Bernama) – Austria aims to woo more Malaysian companies to invest in the country, said its Ambassador to Malaysia, Dr Michael Postl. Postl, who assumed the post in August 2017, said Malaysia was one of Austria’s important trading partners. “Malaysia is currently ranked first in South-East Asia in terms of imports from the country and 38th worldwide in terms of exports into the country,” he told Bernama after making a courtesy call on Bernama Chairman, Azman Ujang, here Friday. Postl hoped that the values of imports and exports could be further improved. He said despite all these, there were no big foreign direct investments (FDIs) yet from Malaysian companies into his country, although the FDIs from Austrian companies into Malaysia were valued at over €200 million (€1 = RM4.95). "There are still big potentials to increase,” he said. Postl said Austria was also strategically located in Europe and would be a prime location for business operators to establish and expand their businesses in Europe. "We think that Vienna (Austria's capital city) has excellent transfer facilities. We have direct flights to all countries in the western Balkan several times a day and flight connections to all countries in eastern Europe. "So, for companies interested in the European market we think that Austria offers opportunities,” he said. Postl said he hoped to bring more Austrian companies to invest in Malaysia, and Austrians in general to visit Malaysia and vice versa, thus strengthening the tourism industry in both countries. "Austria is also a cultural country … we have a lot of classical music. Vienna is called the ‘Capital of Classical Music’,” he said. On the visit to the Malaysian National News Agency, Postl said, the exchange was important as the media played significant roles in all countries. Meanwhile, Azman said, Bernama could play a major role in terms of media relation to profile the foreign embassies here in terms of the ambassadors and their countries’ activities. Apart from that, he also called upon all the media in the country to maintain regular interactions with embassies to help the Foreign Ministry foster relationships between Malaysia and its foreign partners. -- BERNAMA