KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 20): Selangor boosted its position as a gateway to Asean when the state’s international trade events — Selangor International Business Summit 2023 (SIBS 2023) and Selangor Aviation Show 2023 (SAS 2023) — achieved a record RM7 billion in combined potential transaction value, compared with RM2.63 billion in 2022.

SIBS 2023 recorded the highest-ever potential negotiated sales of RM6.12 billion, versus RM1.45 billion in 2022, according to Invest Selangor Bhd in a statement on Monday.

The state investment arm said that 34 memoranda of understanding (MOUs) were signed during the seventh edition of SIBS, covering collaborations across various industry sub-sectors.

The four-day summit, held from Oct 19 to 22 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC), attracted a total of 57,249 visitors from 83 countries, ranging from business owners, importers, wholesalers, distributors, retailers and hypermarket purchasing departments.

“This number far surpassed the 44,342 visitors registered in 2022. SIBS 2023 also hosted a total of 339 trade buyers from 26 countries, 11 supermarket buyers and two pharmacy buyers this time around,” Invest Selangor said.

Meanwhile, SAS 2023 recorded a total of RM823 million in potential transaction value over the three-day event from Sept 7 to 9 at Skypark RAC in Bukit Jelutong, Shah Alam.

The third edition of SAS concluded with 28 MOUs signed on various aerospace industry sub-sector collaborations, twice as many as in 2022.

“Participation in the event reached an all-time high, recording a total of 19,217 visitors over the three-day event, far surpassing the targeted 12,000 visitors. Of this number, 55.1% were trade visitors, while 44.9% were members of the public. This marks a significant jump over the 10,563 visitors recorded for SAS 2022,” said Invest Selangor.

SIBS and SAS are two of the many activities organised by the state, through Invest Selangor, to drive the state’s economic growth, and to enable the development of various strategic industrial and services sectors specifically.

“With the resounding success of SIBS 2023 and SAS 2023, Selangor’s importance as a regional investment and global trading hub, as well as the gateway to Asean for local, regional, and international businesses to penetrate the Asean market is surely gaining recognition among key stakeholders around the region and the world,” it added.

Moving forward, Invest Selangor said SIBS and SAS will continue to play significant roles for local and international industry players to convene and explore the potential of Malaysian and regional markets.