Malaysia is closely monitoring potential global and domestic economic changes after Donald Trump’s victory in the recent United States presidential election. Economy Minister Mohd Rafizi Ramli emphasized that while the government is awaiting new policy announcements from Washington, it is prepared to respond swiftly to any developments that may affect Malaysia’s economic outlook.
“Given the global economic influence of the US, every country, including Malaysia, is assessing the potential impacts of a change in the US administration,” Rafizi said. “While we wait for further announcements, we will closely observe how the Trump administration’s policies may shape both the global and local economies,” he added after attending an industry engagement session for the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP).
Rafizi noted that Malaysia’s approach will be proactive, ensuring the country remains agile in responding to any shifts in global geopolitics, particularly from major trading partners. “Many of our initiatives, such as those in semiconductors and energy transition, are driven by domestic needs. These are structural changes that will help strengthen our industries and economy in the long term,” he explained.
In addition to economic preparedness, Rafizi discussed Malaysia’s vision for positioning itself as a leader in the global data centre ecosystem. During his address to stakeholders from the electronics, aerospace, and automotive sectors, he outlined Malaysia’s goal to expand beyond simply hosting data centres and to become a significant player in the broader data centre value chain.
“Malaysia is already attracting data centres, but we aim to participate in the higher-value segments of the industry. We are exploring catalytic interventions to build the ecosystem that will enable Malaysia to play a key role in the global data centre market by the end of this decade,” he said.
As the 13MP is being finalized, Rafizi confirmed that the ministry is engaging not only with state governments but also with key industries to ensure the plan reflects strategic input from all sectors. The 13MP is expected to be presented to Parliament on July 3, 2025.