Anwar said this was due to Germany’s foreign policy, which aims to mitigate economic risks associated with its reliance on China.

“This (de-risking) means to reduce dependency on China and, therefore, they (Germany) are picking other countries,” he told the Dewan Rakyat during Prime Minister’s Question Time today.

“Currently, Germany has chosen Malaysia as a hub, apart from China, for trade dealings.”

Anwar said this was why the investment, trade and industry ministry had been receiving more official visits from foreign trade ministers lately.

“Just this week, the ministry will see the arrival of two or three trade ministers seeking to expedite free trade agreements with the European Union,” he said.

The prime minister was responding to a supplementary question from Jimmy Puah (PH-Tebrau) who asked how the trade war would affect Malaysia’s economic growth and how the country could capitalise on it.