Page 543 - MOE ENGLISH PR REPORT - OCTOBER 2024

10/23/24, 9:51 AM UAE, Malaysia conclude negotiations towards Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
UAE, Malaysia conclude negotiations towards

Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement

The UAE and Malaysia CEPA seeks to build on bilateral non-oil trade that exceeded US$4.9 billion in 2023,

and US$2.5 billion in the first six months of 2024.
HE Al Zeyoudi: “The fourth largest economy in the Southeast Asia region, and with economic growth
outstripping forecasts, Malaysia offers substantial opportunity for our exporters, industrialists and business
leaders, especially in high-growth sectors such as energy, logistics, manufacturing and financial services.”

HE Zafrul Aziz: “The CEPA is a strategic lever for UAE-based companies to optimise Malaysia as a gateway
into the ASEAN market, which in turn, will provide tremendous opportunities for our businesses – particularly
the SMEs – through integration into regional supply chains, capacity-building and knowledge sharing via the
UAE investors.”

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 10 October 2024: His Excellency Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of
State for Foreign Trade, and His Excellency Zafrul Aziz, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry for Malaysia,
have confirmed the conclusion of negotiations towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement

(CEPA) between the two nations that seeks to eliminate or lower tariffs, reduce barriers to trade, promote private-
sector collaboration and establish new pathways for investment.

It builds on deepening economic ties between two nations, which in 2023 saw bilateral non-oil trade exceed
US$4.9 billion. In the first half of 2024, non-oil trade reached US$2.5 billion, a 7 percent increase compared to the

same period in 2023. Malaysia currently ranks as the UAE’s 12th-largest Asian trading partner, and fifth among
ASEAN countries, while the UAE is Malaysia’s second-largest trade partner in the Arab world, accounting for 32

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