Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and Tengku Zafrul Aziz, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry of Malaysia, have signed a joint statement agreeing to launch negotiations to establish a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the two countries.
The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the official visit of H.H. Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, to the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.
Al Zeyoudi underlined the developing relations between the UAE and Malaysia, stating that the negotiations have built upon strong growth in bilateral trade and investment over recent years.
"Non-oil trade between the UAE and Malaysia continues its upward trajectory over the past five years, reaching USD 4.6 billion in 2022, a growth of 5 per cent compared to 2021, and up 31 per cent and 18 per cent compared to 2020 and 2019, respectively.
"Today, the UAE is Malaysia's 17th trade partner globally and the second in the Middle East, accounting for 32 per cent of Malaysia's trade with Arab countries. The UAE is also the first destination for Malaysian merchandise exports to Arab countries, accounting for 40 per cent of its exports to the region. The other way, Malaysia ranks eighth globally for UAE exports and 19th in re-exports."
On the growing investment relations between the two countries, Al Zeyoudi highlighted that the value of Malaysian investments in the UAE amount to USD 150 million across sectors of industry, building and construction, real estate, trade, transport, storage, financial activities, insurance, and professional and technical activities, while UAE investments in Malaysia amount to more than USD 220 million, including more than USD 51 million in the industrial sector.