Khazanah Nasional Bhd has stressed its renewed focus on strengthening cooperation with the United States (US) and China in the fields of investment, technology and research and development (R&D).
Khazanah Chief Investment Officer, Datuk Hisham Hamdan, said that apart from making direct investments, the company is also looking for companies from both countries that can collaborate with Malaysian entrepreneurs, especially in sharing technology and R&D expertise.
He explained that China currently invests about 2.7% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in research activities, thus opening up vast opportunities for Malaysia to become a strategic partner in the field of technology.
He said that Malaysia is also increasingly attracting investments from the US and China, especially in the development of data centres and information technology infrastructure, as well as having the potential to become a replacement destination in the global supply chain following changes in the economic policies of the two superpowers.
Khazanah currently has investments in over 8,000 companies worldwide, focusing not only on specific companies but also on sectors and geographical locations that can provide the best returns to the country.
Regarding the proposed collaboration with a Chinese company in the construction of a rare earth metal processing plant in Malaysia, Hisham said discussions were still at an early stage but admitted that the industry was one of the areas being considered.
