Jeddah - Malaysia has opened an agricommodity regional office in Jeddah in a bid to boost trade between the southeast Asian country and º£½ÇÖ±²¥.
The Commodities Integration Marketing Company (CIMC), the first of its kind in the Middle East, houses three government-linked organizations under one roof — the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, Malaysian Rubber Council and Malaysian Timber Council.
The CIMC will act as Malaysia’s commodities hub to deliver high-quality agricommodity products to the Middle East and Africa.
Malaysian Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin said in a press conference the office is important for her country’s commodities in the region, especially º£½ÇÖ±²¥.
“This will lead to bigger opportunities for bilateral trade between the two countries,†she added in a statement.
º£½ÇÖ±²¥ has committed to lift Malaysian palm oil imports from 318,000 tonnes, valued at RM900 million ($215 million) last year, to 500,000 tonnes this year estimated to be worth RM1.5 billion.
In 2020, Malaysian commodity exports to the MENA region totaled $2.37 billion, with exports of rubber and related products accounting for $535 million.
Exports of timber and related products were worth US$324.5 million, while palm oil and palm oil products hit US$1.51 billion.
