YBhg. Dato’ Naimun Ashakli Mohammad, Ambassador of Malaysia to Spain hosted a working luncheon with several top Spanish companies on 24 March 2009 to discuss possible new areas of economic and trade cooperation to be forged between Malaysia and Spain.
The Spanish companies that participated in the working luncheon were Acerinox (Spain’s biggest stainless steel manufacturing company and Malaysia’s biggest investor), GMV (an ICT and telecommunication company), IDOM (an engineering company) and CAF (a railway construction company). These four companies were also a part of a delegation of Spanish companies and investors to Malaysia earlier in February 2009, which was headed by the Confederation of Employers and Industries of Spain (CEOE) International. Others present at the luncheon meeting were a representative from MIDA Paris and a representative from CEOE.
YBhg. Dato’ Naimun Ashakli explained to the Spanish companies on Malaysia’s strategy, including the economic stimulus package that was launched to counter the effects of the global financial crisis and economic downturn. Malaysia’s strong economic resilience and steady GDP growth were also highlighted during the luncheon meeting.
In response, the representatives from the Spanish companies briefed on their recent visit to Malaysia, as well as their companies’ achievements and other recent major highlights. They also expressed their keen interest to explore further the Malaysian market in their respective sectors with close consultation from MIDA.