“TRADE WAR” is a global buzzword as the trade spat between US and China escalates.

The disarray is set to increase as countries respond to the US tariffs and economic forecast is expected to be uncertain by pundits.

Many among us would have a similar perception that such a trade war will adversely affect our economic growth and trade activities.

Instead, the trade tension would not bring bad impact all times as it also offers advantages for us to seek opportunities from different perspectives.

As such, the latest move by the US to ratchet up tariffs on Chinese goods like plastic and rubber products will certainly offer huge advantages for Malaysian glove makers to substitute China’s products for US market which currently consumes almost 30% of the world’s medical gloves.

Meanwhile as China strikes back by imposing 25% tariffs on a list of the US goods including soybeans, it offers lucrative opportunities for palm oil industry to strengthen its position in the massive Chinese market by substituting soybeans oil for cooking.

On top of that, as Beijing looks for new commercial partners ahead, it has given swift regulatory approvals for imports products especially generic drugs which also unlock the new potential for emerging economies to replace US goods.

In a nutshell, the impact of trade war should be evaluated thoroughly, and more importantly we must get cracking to grab any opportunity to boost our economic activities. – July 16, 2018.

* Ahmad Shahir Abdul Aziz reads the Malaysian Insight.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.