Facon Exhibitions Official Website – Leading Exhibition Organizers in Malaysia

Amid any gloom, there shall be light at the end of the tunnel, any wise economist would advocate. Come 2010, ASEAN economies is expected to rebound faster than the rest of the world with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projecting regional ASEAN economies to achieve a 4.1% growth (2009: projected 2.7%) in stark comparison with 1.6% for the United States (2009: projected -1.6%) and 0.2% for the Euro area (2009: projected -2.0%).

Lessons learnt from the 1997/1998 Asian Financial downturn has enabled the Malaysian Government to successfully put in place key strategies aimed at insulating the country’s economy from plummeting global output and trade. On its part, the Government has spearheaded various pump-priming measures to restore the health of Malaysia’s economy, including the launching of two stimulus packages valued at RM67 billion (US$18 billion) to boost economic growth.

On a long-term perspective, the Third Industrial Master Plan (IMP3) – a 15-year blueprint for industrial development in Malaysia – projects the economy to grow an average 6.3% per annum during the entire IMP3 period (2006-2020) after having expanded an average of 4.6% per annum from 1996-2005.

Key strategic thrusts identified include the undertaking of higher value-added activities, enhancing total factor productivity, venturing into new growth areas, emphasis on research and development (R&D), and the integration of Malaysian industries and services into the regional and global networks. Elsewhere, IMP3 is poised to ride on the up-cycle of economic growth in Asia and other emerging markets – most notably China and India.

Even before the outbreak of the economic crisis, Malaysia’s trade and industry had been experiencing robust performance. Global exports had been expanding at an average annual rate of 10.8% since 2004. In terms of value, Malaysia’s exports grew by 9.6% to RM605.1 billion in 2008.

Data for 2008 also indicated that Malaysia continues to be an attractive investment destination for high-value added and capital-intensive manufacturing projects. Approved investments shot up to an all-time high of RM62.8 billion in 2008, exceeding the average annual investment target of RM27.5 billion set under IMP3.

In 2008, approval was granted to a total of 480 projects with foreign participation valued at RM46.1 billion or 73.4% of total investments approved. This represented a 38% growth compared with RM33.4 billion in 2007. Basic metal products recorded to the highest level of investments, with approval amounting to RM20.4 billion or 44.2% of total approved investments. Other industries that attracted considerable investments in 2008 were the electronics & electrical (RM17.3 billion), petroleum products (RM1.25 billion), chemicals and chemical products (RM1.22 billion) and food manufacturing (RM 1.1 billion).

Foreign investments in new projects amounted to RM34.2 billion in 2008 (2007: RM17.3 billion), whereas those in expansion/diversification projects totalled RM11.9 billion (2007: RM16.1 billion). Malaysia’s ability to continue to attract a substantial amount of FDI is due to, among others, liberal investment polices, cost-competitiveness as an investment location, well-developed infrastructure, strong supporting industries, and productive workforce.

Malaysia continues to make waves as it moves towards a high technology, knowledge-driven and skills–based economy. In this regard, the Government is pro-actively promoting new areas of growth to diversify the manufacturing base. Within the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector, there is gradual change of products as the industry moves up the value chain. New and emerging technologies such as nanotechnology, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), photonics, wireless technology and advanced display technology have already come on stream and are being exported.

The fact that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) – touted as the backbone of Malaysia’s manufacturing prowess – are actively moving up the value chain vis-à-vis enhancement of their core competencies is crucial for Malaysia to remain competitive both regionally and globally. Efforts are already underway to assist SMEs in this aspect by placing offering financial assistance in acquiring cutting edge technology.

Malaysia ’s credentials as a home to success stories for multinationals from the US, Europe, Asia and Australia should also be a draw for other foreign companies to do business in one of the fastest growing economies in the Asia-Pacific region.

Malaysia has to date attracted more than 5,000 foreign companies from more than 40 countries to establish their operations in the country. Many of them have also expanded and diversified their operations in the country, reflecting their confidence in Malaysia as a site for their business ventures.

Manufacturing sector is still expected to remain as Malaysia Star performer as it continues to move away from low-value assembly to high value-added manufacturing backed with ample R&D facility. Indeed, the country is rising from its electronics manufacturing roots to become a major player in biotechnology, medical device manufacturing, semiconductors, solar power, and value-added tech production.

Since its inception in 1992 (18 years), ICA has proven time and again to be a high successful event, attracting the right target groups of visitors, which is the essential for any successful trade fair. As shown in the accompanying chart, a total of 5,026 trade visitors thronged the ICA 2008, many of whom are key business personnel whose fields are relevant to the objectives of the biennial event. It’s an investment not to be missed!

It’s a highly focused exhibition on instrumentation, control and automation technology, bringing key decision makers and users from the manufacturing and service industry under one roof.
A perfect promotional platform to market your solutions to manufacturers.
A prime platform to reinforce your leading position or to make a major inroad into this huge and growing market.
It’s perfectly timed event to ride on the expected waves of economic recovery in Malaysia and the region.
It only happens once in 2 years.