08/01/2023 (Xinhua Net) - Malaysia aims to boost bilateral trade with neighboring Indonesia including cross-border investments in a number of key sectors, a Malaysian official said on Sunday.

Among areas of interest are pharmaceuticals, aerospace, palm-oil processing, consumer goods, as well as defense and security, International Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said in a statement.

These were reflected in nine Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) between Malaysian and Indonesian companies, with a total potential investment value of more than 1.6 billion ringgit (363 million U.S. dollars), he said.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is currently on a two-day official visit to Indonesia from Sunday to Monday, his first tour abroad since assuming office last November, with trade being high on the agenda.

Within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Indonesia is Malaysia's second-largest partner in trade and the third-largest source of foreign direct investment.

Total trade between the two countries was roughly 23 billion dollars in 2021, a 45.5 percent year-on-year increase compared to 2020.

For the period of January to November 2022, the bilateral trade between both countries had already exceeded 27 billion dollars, approximately 33 percent more than the corresponding period in 2021.

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