Because of its location, as well as its good relations with countries in the region, Malaysia is a popular trading partner with most countries. We are also an active participant in various trade groupings, providing investors with some of the most favourable incentives to penetrate the world's fastest growing consumer markets of ASEAN, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East.

ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nation)

• Socio economic grouping with a 500 million consumer base.
• Malaysia is signatory to the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA), which provides for the lowering of intra-regional tariffs.
• The China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement signed in 2002 will create the world's biggest trading bloc with a combined market of nearly two billion consumers.
• A survey carries out by a consortium of media institutes on ASEAN attitudes towards member nations named Malaysia as the most admired ASEAN member. Malaysia was admired not for only its impressive developments but more for its multi-cultural harmony and political stability.

Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

• Malaysia is actively involved in APEC's mission of achieving free and open trade investment.
• Asia is Malaysia's biggest trading partner, accounting for almost two thirds (63.6%) or USD93.4 billion of the country's trade in 2003.

Organisation of Islamic Conferences (OIC)

• Malaysia is the Chairman of the Organisation of Islamic Conferences (OIC), an inter-governmental grouping of 57 member states, covering the continent of Asia, Africa and Europe with a total population of 1.3 billion, representing 21% of the global population.
• Malaysia has been lauded as a modern, moderate and progressive Muslim nation.
• In 2003, Malaysia was named the OIC's strategic hub for the Asia Pacific region.
• Malaysia's trade with the OIC countries in 2004 accounted for 7.0% of its global trade.