KUCHING: Sarawak recorded RM28.2 billion in approved investments in the first quarter of 2025, placing it third among all states, behind Johor (RM70.6 billion) and Selangor (RM60.1 billion).
According to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA), this investment performance was attributed to a combination of effective economic policies, a favourable investment environment, and active regional promotion.
Between January and March 2025, Malaysia approved a total of RM89.8 billion in investments, up slightly from RM86.6 billion during the same period last year.
These involved 1,556 projects and are expected to create 33,368 new jobs, compared to 1,586 projects and 35,173 jobs in Q1 2024.
Foreign investments accounted for RM60.4 billion, or 67 per cent of the total, marking an increase from RM44.6 billion in the previous year.
Domestic investments, on the other hand, totalled RM29.4 billion, down from RM42.0 billion in Q1 2024.
The services sector continued to dominate, with RM57.8 billion or 64.4 per cent of total approved investments, followed by manufacturing at RM30.5 billion (33.9 per cent), and the primary sector at RM1.5 billion (1.7 per cent).
By number of projects and jobs, the services sector registered 1,342 projects and 15,051 jobs, while manufacturing accounted for 207 projects and 18,317 jobs.
The primary sector, which recorded RM1.5 billion solely from mining, involved seven projects and did not generate any new jobs.
However, MIDA noted that no approvals were recorded for agriculture or plantation-related investments.
Among the top five investing states based on MIDA’s separate breakdown were Johor (RM30.1 billion), W.P. Kuala Lumpur (RM15 billion), Sabah (RM10.9 billion), Selangor (RM10.2 billion), and Pulau Pinang (RM9.2 billion).
Singapore remained the top foreign investor with RM28.3 billion, followed by the United States (RM9.9 billion), China (RM7.9 billion), the British Virgin Islands (RM6.6 billion), and Taiwan (RM1.7 billion).
MIDA noted that foreign investment reporting is based on the ultimate source country.
Top sub-sectors in services included information and communications (RM35.1 billion), real estate (RM13.6 billion), support services (RM4.5 billion), financial services (RM1.7 billion), and distributive trade (RM1.1 billion).
In manufacturing, the largest contributors were electrical and electronics products (RM8.9 billion), transport equipment (RM6.8 billion), chemical products (RM3.6 billion), fabricated metal products (RM1.8 billion), and machinery and equipment (RM1.4 billion).
MIDA also reported a domestic-to-foreign investment ratio of 33:67 for the quarter.
