Countdown to 2020!

[OshHisham]

doesn't care lah those europeans. only success people could succeed in whatever condition. no need to blame this and that...

[pedang]

penjajahan alaf baru.. dulu2 jajah cara Kolonialisme n imperialsme ( hasil cukai, timah, getah dll.. abis ditarah), skarang nak jajah ekonomi plak.. sepak je bontot ambasador tue.

[Skyprince]

Originally Posted by Pedang

sepak je bontot ambasador tue.

[haze]

kite x keje cuci kasut org putih lagi.

Don't meddle in Malaysia's domestic affairs, warns Najib

BERNAMA

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KUANTAN, Sat.:

Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today expressed regret over the statement by the Ambassador and Head of the European Commission Delegation to Malaysia with regard to the New Economic Policy (NEP), saying that the envoy should not interfere in Malaysia’s domestic affairs or policy.

Refuting the facts submitted by the envoy, the Deputy Prime Minister said that as an ambassador accredited to this country, Thierry Rommel should play a role to forge closer relations between the two countries.

“Normally, an ambassador or envoy does not comment on the affairs of the country to which they are accredited. This has been the practice because when we comment on the policies adopted by the country concerned, it means that we are intefering in the affairs of the host country,” he told reporters after launching the national level Campaign On Early Intervention To Prevent Children’s Disability, here.

Najib said this when asked to comment on Rommel’s statement yesterday which was carried by a foreign wire agency, The Associated Press. Rommel was quoted as saying that the NEP gave a host of privileges in jobs, education, business and other areas to the ethnic Malays. He also urged the Malaysian government to roll back its affirmative action policy for the Malays, saying it was discriminatory and amounted to protectionism against foreign companies.

“As part of the NEP, all public-listed companies are required to allocate 30 per cent of their shares to the Malays. Companies without Malay directors or employees are excluded from lucrative government contracts,” he said in a speech to local and foreign businessmen last Thursday.

On Malaysia’s action or official protest against the statement, Najib said: “Wait first, I will seek the opinion of Wisma Putra (the Foreign Ministry). The role of the ambassador is to forge closer relations between the country he represents and the host country. In terms of diplomatic principles and practice, his action contradicts the practice that we adopt.

“What was raised can certainly be disputed in terms of the fact,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.

Also present at the launch were BAKTI Vice-President Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob and Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek.

[OshHisham]

ask european to stop discriminate againts muslims first....!

[baqthier]

Moving on...

From The Star

http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story...8&sec=business

Tuesday June 19, 2007

Malaysians form only 10% of skilled workforce

MALACCA: The country is way off its target of having 54% of the skilled workforce in Malaysia comprising of Malaysians by 2020.

Human Resources Department director Romli Hassan said locals now make up only 10% of the country’s skilled workers.

He added, however, efforts were being made to reduce the country’s dependence on foreigners.

“At the moment, we cannot deny that the country relies a lot on foreign skilled labour.

“But we are making an effort to reduce this reliance,” Romli told reporters here on Tuesday.

He had earlier witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Industrial Training Institute (ILP) in Selandar and Cubic Integrated Manufacturing (Cubic).

The MoU provides for Cubic to teach housewives and school leavers computer skills at the Selandar ILP.

Romli said three new ILPs would be built under the Ninth Malaysia Plan, along with a trainers’ training institute and four advance technology training institutes.

The department would also take over the ILP in Prai, Penang, which was privatised in the 1960s.

The ILP intake would be increased from 25,000 students annually to about 30,000 a year to offset the shortage of skilled workers.

Romli added that the department was also training some 600 youth who had left school after taking their SPM examination.

[adamcwy]

I've No Intention To Meddle In Malaysia's Domestic Affairs - Rommel

By Tengku Noor Shamsiah Tengku Abdullah

PUTRAJAYA, June 25 (Bernama) -- Thierry Rommel, the European Union's (EU) top envoy to Malaysia, says he has no intention whatsoever to meddle in Malaysia's internal affairs.

The issue has been blown out of proportion, said Rommel who was summoned to the Foreign Ministry today to explain his adverse remarks on the New Economic Policy (NEP).

During the 45-minute meeting with the ministry secretary-general Datuk Othman Hashim, Rommel said he explained the rationale for his remarks and highlighted that there was no misunderstanding on the inappropriateness for a diplomatic envoy to interfere in the internal affairs.

"I also took note of the ministry's discontent and objections to my remarks," said Rommel, who is also the ambassador and head of the European Commission delegation to Malaysia.

Rommel came under strong criticism from Malaysian leaders including from Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak over his alleged remarks that the NEP, seen to be favouring the Malays and Bumiputeras, did not provide a level-playing field to foreign companies.

Najib ticked off Rommel on Saturday for overstepping his boundaries and meddling in Malaysia's internal affairs.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said yesterday Malaysia viewed Rommel's comments as irresponsible and he would be asked to explain.

He reportedly made the remarks at a luncheon talk hosted by the European Union Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.

"I fear my comments have been blown out of proportion while leaving aside the key messages relating to how the EU-Malaysia relationship can be furthered as we go along, issues that might emerge in pursuing our common vision of that partnership.

"As an envoy, I've always been looking into ways to better enhance relations between Malaysia and EU," said Rommel who is in his fourth year in Malaysia.

He said the EU, at the highest political level, was committed to see the partnership with South East Asia, particularly with Malaysia, deepened and strengthened.

He said the EU always looked towards Malaysia as a self-confident country, a founding and a visionary member of Asean.

"We want to forge stronger and modern partnership with Malaysia along with other Asean members. We want to work together for shared goals of prosperity, people-centred governance, peace, stability and security," he added.

-- BERNAMA

Cheers,
adamcwy

[triple-j]

damage control he he he...

[White_soX]

instead of mad at EU, why dun the denied the accuse? like prove things like that doesn't happen, huhu just a thought

[ntly1]

Originally Posted by pedang

to me.. they know nothing about sosial contract n tgk la ape diorg dah buat kat middle east.

To me, nowaday many Malays are capable & rich..therefore this so called social contract (or NEP) should abolish..! and not becos of why EU top envoy said..cheers

[OshHisham]

malaysia is easing the NEP as the IDR been the first region where the racial base policy has no longer be an obstacle to foreign/local companies.

our local universities used to have quota system(55-45) for the entrance but now the selection already based on meritoracy.

MRSM/Science School are now open 10% to non-bumis(i see a lot of indian instead...no chinese at all...but still unfilled)

...so, it is a matter of time.

Originally Posted by travellator

Malaysia's Abdullah Says Government May Ease Investment Rules

By Angus Whitley

June 14 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said he may ease investment restrictions and roll back race-based policies should an experiment in the southern state of Johor be a success.

Asked at a dinner with business executives in Kuala Lumpur late today whether the redevelopment of Johor could be a model for the rest of the country, the prime minister said ``yes.''

Abdullah is seeking foreign investors to help fund a two- decade, 382 billion ringgit ($110 billion) redevelopment of Johor, bordering Singapore. Scrapping the nation's race-based program could lure investors and pave the way for the country to completely drop its 36-year-old policy in support of ethnic Malays, who comprise 60 percent of the population.

The racial program, introduced under the New Economic Policy in 1971 after clashes between ethnic Chinese and Malays, also known as Bumiputras, aimed to increase the wealth of the nation's poorest grouping through benefits ranging from cheaper housing to greater access to initial public offerings.

Concern about the policy's validity grew last year after a report by the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute in Kuala Lumpur showed the original targets to address the wealth imbalance had been surpassed.

The government earlier this year removed a capital gains tax on property, allowed foreign investors to take out more than three mortgages from local lenders and offered tax incentives aimed at transforming Johor.

The Malaysian government expects the $147 billion economy to expand 6 percent this year after 5.9 percent growth in 2006.

[OshHisham]

mic.org.my

NON-BUMI NOT INTERESTED IN MRSM!

Only about 70% of the total seats reserved for the non-Bumi's in Mara Junior Colleges, through out the country were taken up this year. There are 684 new places for non-Bumiputra?s in Form One and form four this year, but only 432 are filled.

MARA Director-General Datuk Zamani Md.Noor said that it has undertook various measures to attract more non-Bumi students such as grouping them in five colleges. To attract more students to fill the 10% quota of vacancies for non-Bumiputera?s, MARA decided to group them in five colleges beginning this year.

The MARA DG further said that, it has carried out several surveys to identify the reasons for the lack of interest from non-Bumi students. According to those survey Geographical factor is said to be very influential. Non-Bumi students are not keen to further their studies in MRSM as most of the colleges are situated in remote areas. In a related press statement the MARA Director General Datuk Zamani Mohamed Nor said that places reserved for non-Bumiputera students in MARA Junior Science Colleges (MRSM) are automatically filled if they are not taken up. He mentioned that three percent of the 10 person quota reserved for non Bumiputera students remained unfilled even after the second intake this year.

MIC urges Malaysian Indians to utilize the education opportunity provided by the MARA for the educational and social upliftment of the community. For further information on the MRSM enrollment, kindly contact Yayasan Strategik Sosial (03-40415958) the party's social arm.


Monday, 13 Sep 2004

[pedang]

Latest:
Saudi telco, Maxis in RM11b deal

By Adeline Paul Raj
adeline@nstp.com.my

June 27 2007

SAUDI Arabia’s biggest telco has struck a deal to buy a quarter of Maxis Communications Bhd for US$3.05 billion (RM11 billion) in one of the most significant Middle Eastern investments in the region.

The move heralds a new strategic partnership between Saudi Telecom Company (STC) and Binariang GSM Sdn Bhd, the principal shareholder of Maxis.

It will enable STC to venture beyond its home market and penetrate Maxis’ group operations in Malaysia and the fast-growing Indonesian and Indian markets.

The deal will also result in STC getting a controlling 51 per cent stake in Maxis’ Indonesian operations, PT Natrindo Telepon Seluler (NTS), both parties said.

“We look forward to developing this strategic alliance with STC and to be able to jointly expand into other significant markets in Asia, Middle East and Africa,” said Binariang chairman Datuk Raja Arshad Raja Tun Uda.

STC chairman Dr Muhammad bin Suliman Al-Jasser said his company would be able to expand its footprint to over 1.4 billion people in countries where Saudi had histori - cal and current trading, and other relationships.

“This is one of the most significant Middle Eastern investments in the region and demonstrates investor confidence in Malaysia,”said Datuk Nazir Razak, chief executive of CIMB Group, whose investment banking arm is the financial adviser for Binariang.

STC’s investment in the Maxis group marks its first major transaction outside Saudi Arabia, where it offers land-line, mobile and Internet services.

Senior analyst Khair Mirza of Aseambankers gave the thumbs up to the partnership, saying it was a well-structured plan that would bring benefits to both parties. He deemed the US$3.05 billion price tag “fair”.

“In one fell swoop, Maxis has managed to find a cashrich partner to help mitigate its risks in the lucrative ye t very competitive Indonesian market, and help provide the funds for growth as well.” NTS is only the seventh biggest telco in Indonesia, which has some 52 to 55 million mobile subscribers. India, meanwhile, is the world’s fastest-growing mobile market, adding close to five million new mobile users a month.

Binariang last month launched a RM16.4 billion buyout offer for Maxis, to take it private and pursue aggressive growth plans abroad. It paid investors RM15.60 a share to exit the company —a hefty 20 per cent premium over its closing price prior to the offer.

“The privatisation structure allows them to grow ahead in a deal like this without losing any momentum. Time is of the essence in telco deals like this,”Khair said.

The STC-Maxis partnership will include participation in a US$900 million subordinated loan that will be equally underwritten by both parties.

Analysts said STC, a government- owned company, had been looking to expanding abroad as competition at home is set to become stiffer after a third mobile player, Kuwait ’s Mobile Telecommunications Co, entered the market

[pedang]

Malaysians More Confident Of Business Prospects This Year

KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 (Bernama) -- Malaysian businesses are generally more optimistic about their business prospects this year, says Shamsir Jasani's associate director Geoffrey Foo.

Quoting the International Business Report (Malaysia Report) 2007, launched here Tuesday, he said 77 percent of Malaysian businesses interviewed in a survey have recorded stronger expectations for turnover compared with 58 percent last year.

Speaking at the launch of the IBR 2007 report, Foo said Malaysians' level of optimism regarding turnover performance was also considerably higher than the general 68 percent recorded in East Asia (China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand).

Malaysian businesses see globalisation as an opportunity rather than a threat to their business (74 percent) while the businesses in East Asia as a whole viewed globalisation as a threat, said Foo.

He added, the proportion of Malaysian companies exporting has increased in the last year with 44 percent of local companies exporting seven percent more than last year.

"This is significantly higher than both the East Asian average (30 percent) and the global average (34 percent), both of which have fallen slightly since 2006," said Foo.

The event today was officiated by Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen. The IBR, previously known as the International Business Owners Survey (IBOS), is conducted on an annual basis by Grant Thornton member firms to explore a variety of issues affecting business owners from Medium to Large Entrepreneurs (MLEs) around the world.

The global research examines the attitudes, plans and trends of 7,200 businesses in 32 countries across six continents that include all G8 and the majority of the World Bank's top 20 economies which account for 81 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP).

Key findings released in the survey explores key issues such as the economic prospects, business expectations for 2007, constraints on business growth and expansion, international trade and stress among business owners.

-- BERNAMA

[pedang]

Petronas pumps up record RM184b revenue

By Kamarul Yunus
ahmadk@nstp.com.my

June 29 2007



PETROLIAM Nasional Bhd (Petronas) yesterday reported an 8 per cent increase in net profit to RM46.4 billion for its year ended March 31 2007.

The increase which came on a record revenue of RM184.1 billion was driven largely by increased demand for its petroleum products and the higher crude oil prices.

Revenue for the year was RM184.1 billion and pre-tax profit was RM76.3 billion, both increasing about 10 per cent from the previous year, Petronas president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur.

Petronas' balance sheet continued to strengthen with total assets rising 7.8 per cent to RM294.6 billion while shareholders' funds expanded 16.3 per cent to RM170.9 billion while return on average capital employed remained high at 40.9 per cent.

In short, Mohd Hassan said, Petronas either matched or bettered performances of other major oil players and national oil companies, given the challenging global environment in the industry during the year under review.

Crude oil prices stayed high in 2007 as demand outstripped supply.

Meanwhile, supply disruptions in Alaska and Nigeria, and continuing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, raised more concerns over security of supply.

Refined petroleum products remained top revenue generator for Petronas, with sales amounting to RM62.7 billion or one third of total revenue.

Revenue from the sale of crude oil and condensates rose to RM45.4 billion compared with RM41 billion registered in the previous year, as a result of higher sales volume as well as stronger crude oil prices.

"Sales volume increased from 184.9 million barrels to 192.4 million barrels, contributed by new crude oil production from Turkmenistan and Sudan," he said.

He said liquefied natural gas (LNG) continued to be the largest revenue contributor for the group.

"Sales volume increased by 2.1 per cent from 23.6 million tonnes to 24.1 million tonnes on the back of higher volume produced from the group's Egyptian LNG, by 1.4 per cent from RM28.5 billion to RM28.9 billion," he said.

The group's revenue from the sales of petrochemical products rose 9.4 per cent to RM13.9 billion from RM12.7 billion on the back of higher average realised prices.

Manufacturing revenue climbed to RM102.9 billion from RM97.6 billion the previous year.

"Without manufacturing activities, group revenue would be reduced by one-third annually," Mohd Hassan said.

Petronas also continued to reap benefits from its globalisation strategy, with its international business revenue, which comprises revenue from international operations and exports from Malaysia, up RM10.9 billion to RMRM141 billion, accounting for 76.6 per cent of total revenue.

In the period under review, Petronas secured six production sharing contracts overseas, namely in Indonesia, Egypt, Timor Leste, Pakistan, Cuba and deepwater offshore Vietnam.

On the strengthening ringgit, Mohd Hassan said it had a negative impact on the financial results of the group as Petronas conducted its business in US dollars.

"The exchange rate impact on the revenue totalled RM7.2 billion," he noted.

The group's total capital expenditure (capex) for financial year 2007 expanded to RM21.6 billion from RM18.7 billion, with the bulk of it going to domestic projects.

Overall, the group's total reserves increased 2.5 per cent to RM26.49 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) from 25.85 billion boe, of which almost 25 per cent was from international ventures.

Average total production was up 7.1 per cent to 1.71 million boe per day from 1.6 million, with international operations accounting for 34 per cent of the combined production compared with about 27 per cent last year.

In the retail sector, Petronas plans to add another three retail stations in Indonesia and acquire 27 sites for future expansion.

"The group also continued to strengthen its position in Thailand's petroleum pro-ducts market with 117 retail stations and successfully entered the aviation sector during the year," Mohd Hassan said.

[pedang]

Investment growth to strengthen

It will be key driver for Malaysia’s GDP growth this year

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s investment growth is expected to strengthen to 13.5% this year and 8.9% in 2008, from 6.3% in 2006, Citibank Bhd wealth management products research and advisory vice-president Danny Chang said.

“This (the investment growth) will be a key driver for Malaysia’s gross domestic product growth forecast of 6% this year,” he said at the bank’s briefing yesterday on the investment outlook for the second half.

Chang, who is also Citibank Malaysia head of investment and research, said Malaysian equities had benefited from strong foreign fund inflows over the past six months, and that the plantation and construction sectors had done well. An upward re-rating of the banking sector could have a strong impact on the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI), he said.

“If the fundamentals driving the Malaysian economy and the KLCI hold, the laggards that will likely follow would be the finance sector,” he said, adding that finance stocks made up 22.8% of the KLCI.

According to Lipper Hindsight, Malaysia’s finance sector grew 44% between May 31, 2006 and May 31, 2007 while the construction and property sectors grew 89% and 77% respectively.

Chang said analysts from Citi, Citigroup’s financial services company, were bullish on Malaysia, Hong Kong and South Korea but were underweight on Singapore, as they believed that market had risen beyond its earnings growth capacity.

“If our call is correct and fund managers start selling out of Singapore, they would have to place their funds elsewhere. We think these places could be Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Korea and potentially, Taiwan,” he added.

The move, Chang said, could potentially lead to increased foreign fund inflows into Malaysia, where interest rates were expected to remain “conducive”, with the overnight policy rate likely to be maintained this year.

Citi analysts are positive on the global equity outlook for the second half, supported by equity earnings yields that are still above global bond yields, and believe that there would be continued attraction towards global equities, relative to bonds.

Citi said in the event the global markets become more volatile, investors should consider large cap and dividend yielding stocks as these had historically performed better and suffered the least during sell-offs.

However, investors were cautioned about investing in emerging markets over the next six months.

[haze]

Hitachi picks KL as regional centre
By Siti Nur Ain Zulkepli
bt@nstp.com.my


June 30 2007


HITACHI Data Systems has picked Kuala Lumpur for its Asia-Pacific Deal Operations Centre (DOC) to support its regional sales teams and channel partners.

The centre is the first of its kind in the region for storage solutions and the second in the world.

Currently, DOC serves six Asian countries including Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Hong Kong.

It is targeting to serve a total of 13 countries by the end of this year.

Hitachi is also confident it could attract more buyers for its new data storage systems due to their environmental and cost-saving features.

"It offers a system that will save cost up to 25 per cent on power, cooling systems and floor space," vice-president and chief technology officer Hubert M. Yoshida told reporters at a briefing in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

"We received excellent response from firms including banks and government departments since its launch in May this year," he said.

Currently, Hitachi holds 40 per cent of the data storage system market worldwide.

The company expects significant sales for the new product as it had previously chalked up a steady sales growth which exceeded the market average of 10 to 15 per cent.

[Skyprince]

Malaysia's economy expected to grow 7% this year


26-06-2007: Macquarie ups GDP growth to 7% for '07, '08
By Tamimi Omar
Email us your feedback at fd@bizedge.com


Macquarie Research has upgraded its expectations for Malaysia's gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 7% for 2007 and 2008, which is above the official government forecasts of an average growth of 6%.

In a note to clients yesterday, Macquarie said it had upgraded its growth expectations because both external and domestic economic trends are now moving in Malaysia's favour.

Among the factors were that US growth was reaccelerating and inflation risks were low.

The recent rise in US bond yields appeared to be driven by growth expectations, while inflation expectations remain stable, it added.

"This is good news for 'riskier' assets, including emerging market equities," it said.

Macquarie Research said the improvement in the US economy created an ideal position for Malaysia as it remained very exposed to global demand conditions.

It was also upbeat on Malaysia's exports growth, especially with a recovery in the electronics and electrical (E&E), in the second half of 2007. This would be underpinned by a pick up in global electronics demand, particularly that a hardware replacement cycle was under way by the release of Microsoft's Windows Vista.

The research house said it also expected palm oil output to pick up due to the wetter weather conditions. Crude oil and gas output, which together account for 9% of exports, should start to climb as capacity upgrades come on stream.

Macquarie Research said with the buoyant demand conditions, a relatively skilled manufacturing labour force and "simply good" economic policy were creating serious interest in domestic industries.

It also said durable goods sales should pick up in the second half while construction would also continue to accelerate.

Malaysia had recently moved against the declining trend in the manufacturing employment across Asean, it said.

"Anecdotal evidence suggest that Malaysia, with its strong history of manufacturing, can still provide one of the few skilled labour pools remaining available in Asia," it said.

Private consumption accelerated to 8.6% year-on-year (y-o-y) in 1Q07 and government consumption to 7.3%.

"Wage rises, a buoyant stock market and the 'Visit Malaysia' tourist campaign should all contribute to keeping consumption growth elevated," Macquarie Research said.

It said with the civil servants' pay hike of 7% to 47% this year; private sector wages would accelerate too.

Conditions for consumer stocks would continue to improve as employment growth was robust, public sector wages rising, consumer sentiment strong and domestic inflation benign.

Macquarie Research also said durable goods sales should pick up in the second half while construction would also continue to accelerate.

It added Malaysia had recently moved against the declining trend in the manufacturing employment across Asean.

Macquarie Research's top picks reflected a bias towards domestic economic demand plays including DiGi.com Bhd (outperform — target price (TP): RM27.50), Genting Bhd (outperform — TP: 11), IJM Corp Bhd (outperform — TP: RM9), Public Bank Bhd (outperform – TP: RM11.50), AMMB Holdings Bhd (outperform — TP: RM9), Tenaga Nasional Bhd (outperform — TP RM14.10), SP Setia Bhd (outperform — TP: RM9.70) and Berjaya Sports Toto Bhd (outperform –TP: RM6).

[Skyprince]

Take Advantage Of Good Relationship With Oman To Pursue Business




MUSCAT, July 2 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian business community should take advantage of the good relationship between Malaysia and Oman to pursue more trade and investments in the Sultanate which has large oil and gas resources.

Malaysian Ambassador to Oman, Datuk Mohd Zamri Mohd Kassim, said that although bilateral relations are excellent, there is something lacking when it comes to economic links between the two countries.

"Despite the plentiful business opportunities in Oman, we have yet to see aggressive participation from Malaysian businessmen," he told Bernama in an interview.

He is concerned that trade between the two countries for the last few years had always been in Oman's favour.

The first four months of last year saw Malaysia's imports from Oman totalled RM944.8 million but exports only amounted to RM119.04 million while during the January-April period this year, Malaysia's imports stood at RM817.93 million and exports totalled RM146.52 million.

Last year, Malaysia's exports increased to RM365.95 million from RM306.82 million in 2005 while imports rose to RM3,243 million from RM1,931 million in 2005.

Mohd Zamri said that Oman is stepping up its development programme and expanding its tourism sector.

"To me their main priority is to develop the country and as such there will be ample opportunities for Malaysian businessmen to take part, like in infrastructure, road building, real estate and sharing of expertise in the tourism sector," he said.

Mohd Zamri said the Omani government has identified 12 tourism projects, including a development which is similar to that of Langkawi.

"This is where Malaysians can come into the picture and share their rich experiences in developing Langkawi into a tourism haven," said the former ambassador to Sudan, who was posted here about three months ago.

According to Mohd Zamri, the Omani government has high regard for Malaysians, welcoming Malaysian businessmen to invest in the Sultanate and share their success story.

Noting that Malaysian businessmen tended to rely only on certain markets in the Middle East, he urged them to penetrate more new markets.

"Be bold enough to venture into new markets and don't get the impression that a small market or a small country will not be good enough. Investments should be on a long-term basis," he said.

However, the ambassador cautioned investors to only take up projects in accordance with their capabilities or go for projects on a consortium basis.

"It will not look good if you go into a mega-project which you are not capable of handling and not able to complete because in business, trust is very important," he said.

Mohd Zamri said it was also important to know the culture of a country where one is investing in and the types of investment opportunities available.

"Inquire from the Malaysian mission in the particular country where you are going to invest in because we are here to assist all Malaysians," he said.

Oman, which was recently hit by Cyclone Gonu, has speedily embarked on rebuilding damaged roads and restoring water and electricity in parts ravaged by the storm, the worst natural disaster to hit the country since record-keeping started in 1945.

According to reports, 49 people were killed and 27 reported missing while damages were estimated at about US$1 billion.

Oman has a population of 2.5 million, of which 1.8 million are Omanis while the rest are Indians, Bangladeshis ,Pakistanis, Sri Lankans, Filipinos and Indonesians.

Indians formed the largest number at around 350,000. There are also about 200 Malaysians in Oman.

-- BERNAMA

[pedang]

Malaysia to be Sidel's export hub
By Zaidi Isham Ismail
bt@nstp.com.my

July 3 2007

SIDEL Distribution (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, which supplies blow-moulding machines to make plastic and glass bottles, will use Malaysia as a launchpad to export its products worldwide.

Sidel president and chief executive officer Gerard Stricher said that Malaysia is an ideal hub for the company because of its educated workforce and friendly government and investment policies.

"The Malaysian market is small for us, where we sell only 10 machines to local manufacturers, so 99 per cent of our products are exported, especially to Indonesia, Thailand, Africa, Europe and the Americas," Stricher told reporters in Shah Alam, Selangor, recently.

Stricher had earlier accompanied Deputy Information Minister Datuk Seri Chia Kwang Chye, who had launched the French company's newly upgraded 10 million (RM46.4 million) factory.

Sidel is part of French bottling giant Tetra Laval, a world leader in food-processing and packaging systems. To date, it has sold 27,000 machines installed in 190 countries.

In Malaysia, it supplies equipment to make plastic and glass bottles as well as containers and metal cans. Its customers include F&N, Coca-Cola, Permanis, Danone, Nestle, Heineken, and PepsiCo.

Sidel has been in Malaysia for the past 10 years, assembling blow moulding equipment. With the upgraded factory, it now has full-fledged engineering operations sourcing 70 per cent of parts locally.

The 11,000 sq m factory willl boost capacity by 40 per cent and enable the company to deliver 120 machines a year, up from 80 before.

Since 1987, Sidel Malaysia has made more than 500 machines sold in 82 countries.

Over half of the plastic bottles in the world are made by Sidel, which is the world's second largest maker of plastic bottles. It aims to become number one by 2010.

The company employs 5,000 people worldwide and has sales of over 1.2 billion (RM5.6 billion).