Austria’s official trade promotion organisation Advantage Austria commemorated its 50 years in Malaysia, in conjunction with Austria’s national day.
Advantage Austria head and commercial counsellor Reinhart Zimmermann, who has held the post since 2019, said Malaysia had evolved into a technology- driven economy without losing its traditional roots.
“After living for over six years in this beautiful country, I have observed that Malaysia has become a reliable partner, boasting globally competitive advantages in manufacturing for the semiconductor, electrical and electronics, medical devices, and life science industries.
“Austrian businesses are investing and exporting higher amounts every year,” he said during the celebration held at The Estate on Federal Hill in Jalan Damansara, Kuala Lumpur.
“A new record was reached in 2024 – €737mil (RM3.5bil) in exports and €2.2bil (RM10.5bil) in Austrian direct investments in Malaysia, making it by far Austria’s top trade destination in Asean.
“Since Malaysia is very much semiconductor-focused, we are trying to diversify by supporting its environmental, digital industries and citizen-oriented service sectors,” Zimmermann said.
Austrian ambassador Gerhard Eisl said relations between Austria and Malaysia had remained excellent.
He said that although both countries were thousands of kilometres apart, they shared a common vision – a peaceful world based on partnership, cooperation and dialogue.
Eisl said both countries were working closely together at the multilateral level, especially on disarmament.
“The strong backbone of our cooperation is trade and investment, which have grown steadily in recent years, also due to the outstanding support of Advantage Austria.
“I have witnessed the vibrant dynamics of the Malaysian economy as well as the excitement of Austrian companies doing business in Malaysia, and there will be more to come.
“Both are trading nations, dependent on trade and foreign direct investment.
“There is huge potential for the further development of our relations at both bilateral and regional levels.”
He said collaboration between the European Union (EU) and Malaysia was also deepening.
“After signing the Compre-hensive Partnership and Cooperation Agreement in 2022, we are currently negotiating the EU-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
“I am convinced that the FTA will provide another boost to economic cooperation between our countries.
“Austria is fully committed to further deepening its relations with Malaysia, including in the economic field, for mutual benefit – among other things, within the framework of ReFocus Austria, a global business initiative by the Austrian federal ministry for European and international affairs, Advantage Austria and other stakeholders,” said Eisl.
Present at the event was Malaysian Investment Development Authority deputy chief executive officer (Investment Promotion and Facilitation) Zalina Zainol.
Other guests included representatives from 50 subsidiaries of Austrian parent companies operating in Malaysia.
