KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim stated that the Malaysian government will await a detailed briefing from the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) before deciding how to respond to new US trade tariffs.
The tariffs were recently imposed by the administration of US President Donald Trump, initially at 10 per cent on all imports and later raised to 15 per cent following a key Supreme Court ruling that curtailed Trump’s use of emergency trade powers.
Speaking to reporters, Anwar said that MITI Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani had provided an initial briefing, and the matter would be further discussed at the Cabinet meeting scheduled for Friday.
“We will wait for the (Cabinet) meeting on Friday,” Anwar said, noting that MITI is assessing the impact of the new tariffs and coordinating with officials in Washington, D.C., as well as with Malaysia’s ASEAN counterparts to determine the most suitable response.
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The United States is Malaysia’s third-largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching around RM367 billion in 2025. Johari previously noted that Putrajaya is closely monitoring the US trade policy shift, particularly in relation to the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART), which Malaysia has signed but has not yet enacted.
-Malaymail
