Shandong based Daiyin Textile (M) Sdn Bhd, leading textile and garment manufacturer in China to further expand its operations in Malaysia this year to cater to demand for textile and garment-related products plans to make investment of about RM500million. Of the total investment, RM300mil would be allocated for phase two of the expansion project at its existing plant in Sedenak industrial estate here , said Director and general manager Steven Cheng.

Another RM200mil would be invested to set up a new plant manufacturing jeans for export to the United States. It is located in Bukit Batu, about 10km away from the Sedenak plant.

Cheng during his working visit by Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan to the plant near here said that phase two of the expansion project will increase their current production capacity of pure cotton yarn from 20 million kg to 40 million kg yearly.

The company has already submitted the development planning for phase two of the expansion project and the Bukit Batu plant to the relevant authorities.

They hope to start phase two and the plant soon. The expansion projects would create about 1,100 job opportunities.

It is the company’s second manufacturing facility outside China, with its first in Sri Lanka.

The Johor plant produces pure cotton yarn for export mainly to China.

Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan said that the export of made-in-Malaysia textile and garment-related products stood at RM7bil in the first-half of 2016 compared to RM6.3bil in the same period last year.

According to Ahmad, prospects for the textile and garment industry are good, with projected global demand of US$160bil by the end of 2018.

The United States, Canada, the European Union and countries in the region are the main export destinations for the country’s textile and garment manufacturers.

Daiyin Group is involved in textile and garment-related activities and is one of the top 20 companies in China in the industry with 10,000 employees.