'Decision to buy Boeing jets made in March'
Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said MAG would fund the plane purchase that was first announced in March, prior to United States President Donald Trump's tariff announcement.
"The US imposed the tariff partly due to the trade deficit. This means we sold more goods to the US than we bought from the country, and so the US sought to reduce this deficit by imposing a high tariff of 25 per cent," he said in a post on X on Saturday.
Tengku Zafrul said Malaysia listed all big-ticket purchases planned by Malaysian companies from the US, including the Boeing aircraft order.
"We are not making these purchases just to reduce the tariff."
Tengku Zafrul said this demonstrated to the US that Malaysia was a major buyer of its products, which convinced Washington to lower the tariff on Malaysian goods to 19 per cent.
"This smart strategy is the result of careful negotiations, ensuring that the interests of both companies and the country are protected," he added.
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