AEROSPACE INDUSTRY TO GROW ABOUT EIGHT PCT NEXT YEAR, SAYS MIGHT

LANGKAWI (Malaysia), Dec 3 (Bernama) -- The aerospace industry is expected
to grow at comfortable rate of about eight per cent next year due to the
expansion of the aero-manufacturing and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO)
sub-sectors.

Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) senior vice
president (intelligence and research) Lt Col (R) Ir Kamarulzaman Zainal said the
industry's turnover was expected to increase to RM26 billion this year from RM25
billion last year despite the global economic slowdown. (US$1=RM3.38)

"We expect the pressure of lowering production and operating costs due to
the global economic slowdown will further promote more new investments and
outsourcing activities in Malaysia," he told reporters on the sidelines of the
MIGHT Open Forum at Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition
2009 (LIMA 2009) here Thursday.

Elaborating on the industry's performance, he said Malaysia had attracted
more than 13 foreign aerospace investments between 2006 and 2008, including the
plan by a first tier manufacturer to establish their business in the country.

He said the total value of new and reinvestment projects during the period
was more than RM1.4 billion with a threefold increase seen from 2007 to about
RM990 million in 2008.

Kamarulzaman also said that Malaysia was implementing four programmes to
further strengthen the country's aerostructure manufacturing sub-sector in the
global supply chain.

They were design and engineering, technology, tooling production and
secondary process, he said.

MiGHT, an independent and non-profit organisation, was launched as a company
limited by guarantee in 1993. Its predominant role is to enable consensus
building and coordination for industry-government partnership in high
technology.
-- BERNAMA