Malaysian officials optimistic Xi's visit can open up new cooperation opportunities

Malaysian officials are optimistic that Chinese President Xi Jinping's ongoing visit to the country can help deepen bilateral cooperation and open up new opportunities across multiple fields.

Xi arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday to begin a state visit, the second stop of his current five-day, three-nation Southeast Asia tour which started in Vietnam and will later conclude in Cambodia.

Wong Hon Wai, Executive Councilor for Malaysia's Penang State, shared his expectations for Xi's visit in an interview with the China Global Television Network (CGTN) on Wednesday.

Wong is currently attending the 2025 Chengdu International Friendship Cities Cooperation and Development Forum, which kicked off on Wednesday in Chengdu, the capital city of southwest China's Sichuan Province.

"There are many opportunities for us to continue to explore, [including in] business investment, education, culture and agriculture. So there's a long list of opportunities for both sides of Malaysia and China to explore. I think we are excited about (President Xi's) visit, and we hope that there'll be more of such visits as well as planning for us both countries to forge ahead," Wong said on the sidelines of the forum.

Also attending the forum is Penang State Councilor Chee Yeeh Keen, who emphasized the importance of the shared vision between Malaysia and China in achieving mutual growth. He cited a number of key infrastructure projects which are already taking place under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

"If you want to grow together stronger, we need to share some vision that is the same. We are doing like Belt and Road Initiative whereby you know that our second bridge in Penang was co-built by China. I think it's the China Harbor Engineering [Company] and also our UEM [Group] -- our local company holdings. After that, we went into further in industrialization whereby we have this China-Malaysia industrial park in Kuantan, Pahang. Then I think we should look further beyond that. For example, now is industrialization and also like AI technology. We need to move into that, we need to share the same vision and we can grow together, [become] stronger together," said Chee.

The Chengdu International Friendship Cities Cooperation and Development Forum is an event aimed at fostering international cooperation, exchange, and development among global cities. The forum serves as a platform for friendship cities -- those that have established official relationships with Chengdu through partnerships or sister city agreements -- to discuss and collaborate on a variety of issues such as economic development, cultural exchange, technology, and urban management.

China has been Malaysia's largest trading partner for 16 consecutive years, while Malaysia remains China's second-largest trading partner and the largest source of imports within the ASEAN.

Official data showed that in 2024, China-Malaysia bilateral trade reached 212 billion U.S. dollars, marking an 11.4 percent year-on-year increase.

Malaysian officials optimistic Xi's visit can open up new cooperation opportunities

China's latest visa-free entry and tax rebate policies have fueled an influx of foreign visitors in the southern city of Guangzhou, where the country's largest international trade fair is taking place.

Since China expanded its visa-free transit window to 240 hours (10 days) for passport holders from 54 countries in 2024, Guangzhou, host city of the Canton Fair -- has recorded 1.11 million visa-free entries as of April 2025, a 275 percent year-on-year surge.

The policy is part of the country's broader push to attract more overseas visitors, including unilateral visa exemption for 38 countries and slashing the minimum spending threshold for tax refunds from 500 yuan (69 U.S. dollars) to 200 yuan (28 U.S. dollars).

In Canton Fair Convention Complex, an AI-powered virtual host explains instant refund procedures in multiple languages, attracting overseas buyers to the tax service booth, with multilingual tax refund policy and service brochures available.

Several commercial banks' booths also offer live presentations on departure tax refund procedures.

"Since the implementation of the 240-hour visa-free transit policy, as of April 2025, the tax refund for departure we have accepted has increased by 137 percent year-on-year, showcasing the enthusiasm of foreign tourists for tourism and consumption in Guangzhou," said Chen Cuina, account manager at Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) Guangzhou Branch.

The government is also expanding the number of departure tax refund stores and promoting a "refund-upon-purchase" service model. Guangzhou has increased the number of tax refund stores and expanded the variety of tax refund goods.

Currently, 349 stores in Guangzhou offer tax refund services, with 10 pilot stores implementing the in-store tax refund policy.

Since the 137th Canton Fair opened on April 15, the average daily number of tax refund transactions in Guangzhou has reached a record high, increasing by 168 percent compared to last year.

Some merchants even joined in a one-stop online instant tax refund service for departing travelers. They can instantly upload purchase details and documents via their mobile phones at these stores to complete the tax refund process and receive their refunds within five minutes.

"I definitely need to try it (the online instant tax refund), it is good because I immediately get back the money," said an overseas buyer.

Following introducing the 240-hour visa-free transit policy, Guangzhou has welcomed over three million inbound travelers, a 75 percent year-on-year increase. Among them, 1.11 million entered visa-free, representing a 275 percent increase from last year.

China's latest visa-free entry, tax rebate policies fuel influx of overseas visitors in Guangzhou