Malaysia's penang state set to benefit from M'sia-EU FTA

GEORGE TOWN (Penang, Malaysia), March 10 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's northern
Penang state is set to gain from the signing of the Malaysia-European Union Free
Trade Agreement (FTA), says European Union Ambassador and Head of Delegation to
Malaysia, Vincent Piket.

He said the European Union (EU) was taking a big step forward in its
relations with Malaysia and was negotiating several new agreements.

"I think in terms of economic and trade relations, Penang will benefit as
the EU-Malaysia FTA would provide a long-term, stable and legal framework for
the two partners," he said after calling on Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng
at his office here Thursday.

He said the agreement would produce concrete results and offer advantages to
a large group of society on both sides of the industry, trade and academic
sectors.

"The FTA will remove tariffs and open up trade in services beyond the level
of commitment undertaken by EU and Malaysia in the World Trade Organisation.

"It will also boost bilateral investments by providing a legally secure
framework for trade relations, thus, providing legal certainty and
predictability to economic operators," Piket added.

He said Penang would indirectly benefit as the state was the manufacturing
and services sector powerhouse.

Meanwhile, Lim said the state government may organise a joint seminar or an
EU open day in Penang as part of efforts to turn Penang into an international
city.

"The relations is not people-to-people link but more of institution-to-
institution link," he said.