{
  "id": 14389263,
  "title": "Foreign-linked companies contribute 17pct to Malaysia's economic in 2024",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/14/foreign-linked-companies-contribute-17pct-to-malaysias-economic-in",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-14T07:04:55.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/business/economy/2026/10/1555298/foreign-linked-companies-contribute-17pct-malaysias-economic-2024"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Malaysia's economy saw foreign-linked companies contribute 17.1 percent in 2024, according to the Statistics Department. The value added by these companies increased by 1.44 percent to RM323.1 billion, up from RM318.5 billion the previous year. This marked a 34.1 percent growth compared to 2020 when economic activity was impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The number of foreign-linked companies in Malaysia rose by four percent to 3,230 in 2024, compared to 3,101 the previous year. Their workforce expanded to 983,512 employees, an increase of 4.1 percent from 945,436 in 2023. Total employee compensation grew by 3.6 percent to RM60 billion, from RM57.9 billion in 2023. The manufacturing sector remained the largest contributor, with its value add increasing by 4.7 percent to RM165.4 billion in 2024. The services sector followed with a 6.4 percent rise to RM83.1 billion. However, mining and quarrying experienced a slight decline of 0.89 percent to RM77.8 billion. Construction saw a significant 18 percent growth to RM4 billion, while agriculture remained steady at RM600 million. Asia accounted for the largest share of foreign-linked companies, with 2,074 companies or 64.2 percent of the total. Europe contributed 20.8 percent with 673 companies, while the Americas accounted for 12.8 percent with 412 companies. Meanwhile, Malaysian companies operating abroad generated a turnover of RM371.9 billion in 2024, up 8.3 percent from RM343.3 billion in 2023. The services sector accounted for 68 percent of this turnover, followed by manufacturing at 17 percent. Agriculture saw the strongest growth, with its share increasing to 5.5 percent of total turnover. Indonesia was the largest contributor among overseas markets, generating RM68.9 billion or 18.5 percent of the total. Vietnam saw a sharp increase in turnover to RM38.1 billion, while the United Kingdom and Australia experienced significant declines.",
  "summary": "KUALA LUMPUR: Foreign-linked companies operating in Malaysia contributed 17.1 per cent to the national economy in 2024, according to the Statistics Department.",
  "key_points": [
    "Foreign-linked companies contributed 17.1% to Malaysia's 2024 economy",
    "Value added by these companies grew 1.44% to RM323.1 billion",
    "Manufacturing sector remained largest contributor with 4.7% increase"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The steady growth in value added and workforce size signals that international firms are deepening their structural integration into the Malaysian economy across the manufacturing and services sectors.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}