More Malaysian companies operate in ASEAN countries

More than 600 Malaysian companies are operating in ASEAN countries, capitalizing on the robust growth and economic integration that has been laid out by ASEAN, a government official said here Monday. Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) Secretary- General Dr Rebecca Sta Maria said, more Malaysian companies are involved in the global and regional supply and value chains, reflecting greater regional economic integration. She said in a statement that the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement ( AFTA) has been in full implementation since 2010 and member states are also on track with the liberalization of the service sectors. "The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) scoreboard shows that ASEAN is on track to meeting the targets we set for ourselves," she said, adding that "as at March 30, 2013, ASEAN as a whole has met almost 90 percent of our phase one AEC targets, just over 70 percent of our phase two targets and about 80 percent of the phase three targets." "For Malaysia, the AEC is our priority. We have met 93 percent of our phase one targets, and 84.5 percent and 85 percent of phases two and three targets respectively," she said. The AEC is premised on a practical and realistic target for integration, she said.