Credit : Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's X
ISTANBUL, November 8, 2026 — Malaysia will deliberate on the Developing Eight (D-8) Organisation for Economic Cooperation’s target to raise intra-member trade to over US$500 billion by 2030 before the matter is brought to the Cabinet, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said at the end of his working visit to Türkiye.
According to Bernama, Ahmad Zahid said he would first discuss the issue with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan to study the steps Malaysia could take to realise the target. He told Malaysian media at a press conference concluding his four-day visit that he had discussed the matter in depth during a courtesy call by D-8 Secretary-General Sohail Mahmood on November 6.
“I discussed this in depth during a courtesy call by D-8 Secretary-General Sohail Mahmood on Nov 6, and I will present it to the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister,” he said, as reported by Bernama.
Ahmad Zahid said the target is achievable through proactive measures to boost trade among member states, leveraging the group’s market strengths and economic potential. The D-8, established in 1997, brings together Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Türkiye. Azerbaijan joined in 2025.
In a related development reported by Bernama, Ahmad Zahid said he would consult Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani on measures to address the trade imbalance between Malaysia and Türkiye. The trade surplus currently favours Malaysia. The Turkish side asked Malaysia to explore importing a greater volume of goods and products to achieve a more balanced relationship, he said.
Also present at the wrap-up briefing were Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) chairman Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Deputy Secretary-General (Bilateral Affairs), Datuk Syed Mohamad Hasrin Tengku Hussin, Bernama reported.
Ahmad Zahid’s November 5–8 visit focused on strengthening the Malaysia–Türkiye strategic partnership through cooperation in diplomacy, trade, defence and education. During the visit he also took part in the TRT World Forum 2026 at the Istanbul Congress Centre on November 6.
The US$500 billion figure reported by Bernama is framed as a D-8 organisation-wide intra-trade ambition for 2030, rather than a Malaysia-only export forecast or a new spending programme.
Life News Agency notes that Cabinet consideration has not yet taken place; Ahmad Zahid’s comments describe consultations that will precede any Cabinet paper. Detailed national measures, if any, remain to be set out after those discussions.
Independent reporting by the New Straits Times and The Edge Malaysia carried the same core points as Bernama: consultation with Anwar and Mohamad Hasan first, then Cabinet, plus a separate brief to Johari Abdul Ghani on the bilateral trade imbalance with Türkiye. Those outlets likewise place the US$500 billion figure as a D-8-wide intra-trade ambition for 2030.
For Malaysian firms, any eventual Cabinet-backed approach would sit alongside existing D-8 preferential trade arrangements rather than replace them overnight. Ahmad Zahid’s Istanbul remarks set a process — ministerial discussion, then Cabinet — rather than announcing finished trade concessions or import quotas.
Source : Bernama
Bernama Business X: https://x.com/BernamaBiz/status/2119364862438765022 | Article: https://www.bernamabiz.com/news.php?id=2631682
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