KUALA LUMPUR, May 6 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has announced a RM1 billion financial lifeline to support Malaysian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in response to the economic pressure from newly imposed US tariffs.
Addressing a special parliamentary session, Anwar also unveiled an additional RM500 million in soft financing to be channeled through financial development institutions, stressing that the aid will be closely monitored to ensure effective SME participation.
Highlighting that the US accounts for 11 per cent of Malaysia’s RM325 billion trade volume, Anwar said the move is crucial to cushion the impact on key sectors such as energy, chemicals, food, logistics, and high technology.
To diversify Malaysia’s trade resilience, an additional RM50 million will be allocated to Matrade to explore markets in Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and South America. The National Geoeconomics Coordination Centre (NGCC) will also intensify real-time monitoring of economic indicators to enable swift, data-driven policy responses.
