Malaysia’s deputy trade minister Liew Chin Tong during an event in 2023. Liew has warned that Malaysia’s dependence on the US as an export destination “may one day end”. Photo: May Tse

Malaysia seeks Brazil, India chip deals, warns US market may be lost

Malaysia is seeking chip deals with Brazil and India, the government has said, issuing a stark warning that the US market may be lost to the country’s exporters. As tariff-pummelled Southeast Asian nations scour for new, friendlier markets, the Brics grouping has come into focus. The bloc, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South…

Malaysia is seeking chip deals with Brazil and India, the government has said, issuing a stark warning that the US market may be lost to the country’s exporters.
As tariff-pummelled Southeast Asian nations scour for new, friendlier markets, the Brics grouping has come into focus. The bloc, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, now represents about 40 per cent of global output.
Like Asean, the bloc is seeking new trade alliances to soothe its own mauling by American tariffs, as global commerce finds new pathways to operate with US protectionism biting into supply chains.
Malaysia’s deputy trade minister Liew Chin Tong during an event in 2023. Liew has warned that Malaysia’s dependence on the US as an export destination “may one day end”. Photo: May Tse
Malaysia’s deputy trade minister Liew Chin Tong during an event in 2023. Liew has warned that Malaysia’s dependence on the US as an export destination “may one day end”. Photo: May Tse

“We have to accept the fact that our dependence on the US as an export destination may one day end,” Malaysia’s deputy trade minister Liew Chin Tong told parliament on Monday.

“The US now does not want to import much from our country and Asean nations. So we need new markets, we need new partners,” Liew added, referring to the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Malaysia was poised to sign a memorandum of cooperation with Brazil to collaborate on semiconductor development, and was pursuing a similar deal with India, Liew said, but did not elaborate.

As more nations seek to break into the US-led club of high-end chip manufacturing, experts have said that this could include sharing Malaysia’s expertise in intermediate semiconductor assembly and tapping India’s deep pool of tech experts in related areas such as integrated circuit design.

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