KUALA LUMPUR, January 28 – Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng has appealed to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to approve a Special Financial Zone (SFZ) in Penang, warning that potential new US tariffs on electronics could severely impact the state’s economy.
Lim said he met the prime minister on January 16 to propose an SFZ in Ampang Jajar, Butterworth, citing Penang’s heavy reliance on manufacturing and services and the exclusion of electronics from the US-Malaysia Agreement of Reciprocal Tariffs.
Lim cautioned that threatened US tariffs of up to 300 per cent on electronics would be “disastrous” for Penang, arguing that an SFZ—similar to Johor’s—would serve as a critical economic buffer and promote balanced development between the island and the mainland.
While Anwar was receptive, Lim said approval was unlikely for now as the Johor SFZ is still in its early phase, prompting a revised application that includes the 70-acre state-owned Ampang Jajar site alongside three island locations.
