On the one hand, the Malaysian leader's remarks reflect a significant achievement for the Chinese leader in his three-nation Southeast Asian tour, which includes Vietnam, Malaysia, and ends in Cambodia on Friday (April 18, 2025).
Southeast Asia is home to factories for many types of products, and especially since the Trump 1.0 administration launched a trade war with China 7 years ago, many companies from around the world have moved their production bases to this region to produce and export. As a result, ASEAN faces high US tariffs, ranging from 10% to 49% for Cambodia.