French President Emmanuel Macron says his two-day official visit to Malaysia, which begins on Monday (Nov 16), will focus on diversifying France’s rare earth supplies. The minerals are used to make the magnets in some electric motors and electronic devices.
In a post on X, Macron said his visits to Cambodia and Malaysia were aimed at strengthening economic partnerships and protecting jobs and industries in France and the region. He was coming to Malaysia in particular to widen France’s sources of rare earths, he said, materials that are rarely talked about but are essential to industry.
Having several sources of supply reduces the risk of French factories having to halt a production line for lack of parts, and lets companies invest and produce in France with more certainty about the future, he said, adding that more partners meant less dependence.
In a background briefing shared by the French Embassy in Malaysia, the French presidency said the two countries would use the visit to elevate their ties to a strategic partnership covering defence and security, critical minerals, the energy transition, aeronautics and space, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and semiconductors.
It cited an industrial partnership between French company Carester and Malaysian firm Malaco Mining, signed during Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s official visit to France in July 2025, which aims to develop rare earth mining and separation capabilities in Malaysia.
France was Malaysia’s 10th-largest economic partner and its 12th-largest investor in 2025, with bilateral trade rising 11% to €4.7 billion (about RM21.23 billion), according to the French presidency. It said around 300 subsidiaries of French companies and 300 French-owned businesses registered locally employ some 30,000 people in Malaysia.
Anwar, who arrived in Manila on Saturday night for the 49th Asean Summit, is scheduled to return to Malaysia on Monday to receive Macron, before flying back to Manila on Tuesday afternoon for the Asean-United States Special Summit. Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan will lead Malaysia’s delegation at several of the summits while he is away.
Malaysia has a moratorium on exports of raw rare earth elements, and earlier this month the government said it would allow limited exports for research and development to attract investors, provided the companies commit to developing processing facilities in the country.