Malaysia settles for Washington’s pacifier
We dodged Trump's tantrums for bottle-fed access with pricier commitments.
I know, I know. I said I’d steer clear of Asean stuff and leave it to the mainstream crowd.
But I couldn’t resist. I’ll also try to avoid the more embarrassing fumbles by my “esteemed” peers (like calling Prabowo Indonesia’s prime minister or, better yet, “Jokowi”).
And no, I didn’t get leftovers from the great “Asean slush fund” allegedly powering some portals, publications and influencers.
Tsk. I should’ve been “friendlier”. Easy money with zero ROI demanded. What a steal!
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I’ll kick off the week with yesterday’s reciprocal trade deal between the US and Malaysia.
The agreement was signed between Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, during the latter’s visit to Kuala Lumpur for the Asean summit.
You could argue that it’s a strategic move to stabilise bilateral trade amid US tariff pressures.
While Washington is spinning this as “win-win”, the deal requires Malaysia agreeing to significant concessions that could reshape its economic, regulatory and geopolitical landscape.
Malaysia secures tariff stability at 19% on most exports to the US market, as amended — a blow, given we’ve extended significant concessions — compared to the threatened 25% and 60% increases, especially for Chinese goods, under Trump’s executive orders.
There’s also zero-duty access for select Malaysian products listed in the annexes of Trump’s executive order.
This safeguards billions in annual exports, in a trade-dependent economy where exports account for roughly 71% of GDP.
But the cost is steep.