BERNAMA – Semiconductor exports this year will be “better” than the MYR575 billion sales in 2023, thanks largely to the relocation and investments in Malaysia by renowned global companies.
Malaysia Semiconductor Industry Association (MSIA) President Datuk Seri Wong Siew Hai said 20 per cent of exports are shipped to the United States, easily making Malaysia its largest supplier.
Rated sixth in the world for semiconductor exports, Malaysia reportedly has seven per cent of the global market share.
The local semiconductor sector showed its tenacity last year when exports dropped only three per cent from MYR595 billion in 2022 when global industry sales dipped 8.2 per cent.
“For Malaysia to maintain this position, it needs to ship MYR1.2 trillion worth of exports by 2030, which is nearly double (from MYR575 billion in 2023) as everybody is building wafer fabrication plants globally,” Wong said.
A wafer in electronics is a thin slice of semiconductor while wafer fabrication involves repeated sequential processes to produce complete electrical or photonic circuits on semiconductor wafers. There is no denying that Malaysia faces competition, nevertheless, Wong said.
Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and India are also cashing in on the relocation, taking advantage of the US-China trade tensions by getting into the chip business.
But Wong said Malaysia has stood out well due to the big names that have invested here.
Intel has made known its intention to invest to the tune of USD7 billion (MYR33 billion), AT&S GBP1.7 billion (MYR8.7 billion), and Infineon GBP5 billion. This excludes companies with smaller investments of between MYR1 billion and MYR2 billion each, he said.
