Malaysia, An Indispensable Trading Partner Of Taiwan

KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 (Bernama) -- A delegation from Taiwan led by its Agriculture Minister, Lin Tsung-hsien had on March 2, visited several retailers in Kuala Lumpur which sell Taiwan-made agricultural products. The visits were aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of the local consumer demand and actual sales volume. During the first leg of their two-day trip, Lin and his delegation visited local supermarkets such as Aeon at Mid Valley Megamall to find out the sales situation of Taiwan’s agricultural products. “In 2017, the total value of trade between Taiwan and Malaysia in agricultural products reached US$205 million, a 5.44 per cent increase from 2016,” Lin was quoted as saying in a statement. “Taiwan's exports to Malaysia also saw an 8.87 per cent jump compared to the previous year and the export products were mainly processed grain foods, pastry, fish and shellfish. “Malaysia is Taiwan’s indispensable trading partner,” he added. To promote the New Southbound Policy, launched by the government of Taiwan in 2016 which focuses on strengthening ties with neighbours in South and Southeast Asia, the Council of Agriculture which is led by Lin, has assisted to set up Taiwan's Mitagri Co. Besides the existing export goods, as the end of January, Mitagri Co. had exported 22 tonnes of atemoya (a hybrid of two fruits – sugar apple or Annona squamosa and cherimoya or custard apple) to Malaysia. The export of atemoya (also called pineapple sugar apple) to Malaysia in 2018 is expected to reach 40 tonnes, adjusting the current trading situation that is overly concentrated in the Chinese market. Minister Lin also touched on expanding Taiwan’s share in the halal market as the Muslim population is over 1.62 billion worldwide. The Council said that towards this end, it planned to organise delegations to participate in several halal events such as the 2018 Malaysia International Halal Showcase from April 4 to 7, and the 2019 Fi Asia in Thailand from Sept 11 to 13. -- BERNAMA