KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s exports to member countries of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) rose 4.7% to RM486.8bil in 2025, compared with RM464.8bil in 2024.
Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said the increase was largely driven by higher exports to Mexico (up 57%), Chile (15.3%), Singapore (8.1%), Vietnam (2.6%), the United Kingdom (2.4%), Canada (2.1%) and Peru (1.6%).
He said that through the CPTPP, exporters can access non-traditional markets such as Canada, Mexico and Peru and, for the first time, gain preferential access to the UK market, which had previously been subject to regular tariffs.
“Statistics show that the issuance of certificates of origin (CO) for the CPTPP bloc surged dramatically to 21,993 COs in 2025, with an export value of RM7bil, compared with 6,230 COs and RM2.7bil in exports in 2023.
“This proves that local companies are increasingly savvy in leveraging CPTPP tariffs and are aggressively exploring alternative markets for goods, services and raw material supply chains,” he told the Dewan Negara when winding up the debate on the Agong’s Royal Address for his ministry.
Johari said Malaysia has always held a firm position that any unilateral actions challenging the principles of free trade should be addressed collectively through the World Trade Organisation.
However, he said that to confront global uncertainty pragmatically, Malaysia has also initiated integrated cooperation among trading partners within free trade agreements (FTAs), without taking a confrontational stance toward any global economic power.
“Malaysia’s proposal was well received by the CPTPP Commission, which endorsed our initiative for leading integrated cooperation among the trade promotion organisations (TPOs) of the 12 member countries.
“This effort aims to maximise the bloc’s intra-regional economic potential and help micro, small and medium enterprises capture the benefits of the CPTPP through better coordination of market intelligence and more effective trade missions,” he said.
Therefore, Johari said Malaysia, through the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry and the Malaysia External Trade Development Corp (Matrade), has mobilised cooperation among TPOs to stimulate intra-CPTPP trade flows.
He said this effort has also been put into practice through Matrade’s Export Acceleration Mission programmes, which are specifically focused on non-traditional markets. — Bernama
