NEC recognises importance of furniture industry to M'sia economy

PUTRAJAYA: The National Export Council (NEC), at its meeting chaired by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak here today, recognised the importance of the furniture industry to Malaysia's economy.
The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) said the NEC had agreed that the furniture industry could be further elevated through an enhancement in product innovation and creation of high-value segments, adoption of smart and sustainable manufacturing, usage of new materials and establishment of a furniture hub in the country.
"Both the government and private sector are making efforts at moving up the value chain from being an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to an Original Design Manufacturer (ODM)," it said in a statement.
In 2016, Matrade said 80% of Malaysia's furniture exports were wooden furniture, valued at RM7.6 billion.
The top three export markets representing a more than 50 % share were developed countries, notably, the United States (valued at RM2.60 billion with 35 % of export share), the European Union (RM840 million, 11 % share) and Japan (RM696 million, nine % share).
According to Matrade, the industry is expected to generate RM12 billion in revenue by 2020, with employment opportunities of around 240,000 and set to continue contributing to the nation's exports earning.
Currently, it said Malaysia was the eighth largest furniture exporter globally and aimed to be the world's seventh top furniture exporter by 2020, in line with the National Timber Industry Policy (Natip).
Matrade said during the meeting, the NEC also discussed issues and the way forward to accelerate Malaysia's petrochemical exports.
"Petrochemical is a significant sector as it is used in many industries such as agriculture, construction, automotive and electronics, among many others," it added.
In 2016, trade of petrochemicals increased by 6.4 % to RM54.77 billion with exports at RM25.81 billion.
Matrade said the major petrochemical export markets include China (valued at RM6.78 billion and 26.3 % export share), Indonesia (RM3.30 billion, 12.8 % share) and Thailand (RM1.99 billion, 7.7 % share).
By 2020, the sector export is forecast to grow by 16 % with a value of RM36.58 billion.
"Growth is supported by increased capacity, thanks to the Pengerang Integrated Petrochemical Complex (PIPC) that will position Malaysia as the largest producer of petrochemicals in Asean.
"The PIPC is also poised to generate Gross National Income of RM8.90 billion by 2020, create 4,600 new jobs, attract RM129 billion in private investments and RM2.5 billion in public investments," Matrade said.
It said the meeting was also updated on the progress of the Electrical & Electronics (E&E) industry, which assumed a crucial role in driving the Malaysian economy, and contributed 44.6 % to the country's total manufacturing exports in 2016.
Matrade said the NEC acknowledged the prominent role of E&E multinational companies in Malaysia in developing local entities to be part of their global value chain.
It added key areas within the industry, namely, semiconductor, solar and light emitting diodes (LED) would be further promoted to support demand for smart devices, digitisation and the Internet of Things (IoT). — Bernama