Malaysia says US tariffs to have minimal impact on chipmakers

NEW tariffs by the US on some countries will have a minimal impact on Malaysia’s semiconductor industry, according to Trade Minister Zafrul Aziz.

Investments from the US remain “strong up till now” and Malaysia will continue discussions on chip-related matters with the US, Zafrul said in parliament on Thursday (Feb 6). “We have to ensure the standards and enforcement, in case the US decides to raise tariffs or impose export restrictions,” he said.

The US is Malaysia’s third biggest trading partner and its third largest market for electronics exports, Zafrul said.

The US imposed a 10 per cent levy on all Chinese goods early this week, just hours after US President Donald Trump reached separate agreements with the leaders of Canada and Mexico to delay 25 per cent duties for a month. The US also recently limited exports of graphics processing units, essential in training artificial intelligence models, to countries including Malaysia and banned their export to countries including China and Russia.

“The government is taking proactive steps to strengthen our relationship with the US on trade issues to avoid any increase on trade tariffs as what has happened to China, Canada and Mexico,” Zafrul added. BLOOMBERG