KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia attracted RM92.8 billion in approved investments in the first quarter of 2026, according to MIDA. The approvals are expected to create 50,226 new jobs, up 46.7% year on year. The total was marginally lower than the RM93 billion approved in the first quarter of 2025, a decline of 0.2%. The figures cover projects approved across the manufacturing and services sectors in the quarter.
Japan was the largest foreign source of approved investment at RM21.5 billion, up sharply from RM1.6 billion in the first quarter of 2025. It was followed by China and the United States at RM10.1 billion each, Singapore at RM6.7 billion and Thailand at RM2.5 billion. Some 93.6% of Japan's approved investment in the quarter went into digital activities.
Selangor led the states with RM33.5 billion, followed by Johor and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur at RM16.9 billion each, Penang at RM6.2 billion and Sarawak at RM4 billion. Services was the largest contributing sector at RM60.8 billion, or 65.5% of the total, across 731 projects expected to create 19,758 jobs. The state ranking shows how widely the approved investment is spread across the country.
Services, and the data centre share
Information and communications was the largest services subsector at RM38.9 billion. Data centres and cloud computing alone accounted for RM34.6 billion across 33 projects, or 88.9% of the subsector's total approvals. In other words, a single subsector of a single sector carried the bulk of Malaysia's approved investment for the quarter. That is a level of concentration rarely seen in the national investment figures.
Investments in data centres and cloud computing alone, accounted for RM34.6 billion across 33 projects — representing 88.9% of the subsector's total approvals.
The concentration shows how much of Malaysia's current investment pipeline runs through digital infrastructure. Data centre and cloud projects are capital intensive, so a relatively small number of projects can move the national figure by billions of ringgit. It also means the headline number is sensitive to the timing of a handful of large approvals.
Malaysia in the global data centre race
UNCTAD's Global Investment Trends Monitor No. 50, published in January 2026, said global greenfield investment in data centres exceeded US$270 billion in 2025, more than one fifth of total global greenfield investment. Malaysia was among the top 10 destinations globally for data centre projects. The monitor is published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
BMI, a unit of Fitch Solutions, has further noted that Malaysia is prioritising high-value, AI-focused data centre investments, with approximately 4.6 gigawatts of capacity planned or under construction.
MIDA's Data Centre Task Force is now highly selective, extending fast-track treatment only to operators that demonstrate genuine sustainability and long-term commitment. That position puts the burden on applicants to show what they will build, how it will be powered and how long they intend to stay. It also means approvals are being used to steer the kind of projects that come forward rather than simply to attract them.
- RM92.8 billion in approved investments for Q1 2026
- 50,226 new jobs expected, up 46.7%
- RM34.6 billion for data centres and cloud across 33 projects
- Japan the largest foreign source at RM21.5 billion
- Selangor the top state at RM33.5 billion
What it means for cloud buyers
For cloud and AI buyers in Malaysia, the figures matter because they describe how much capacity is being funded rather than merely announced. The concentration of approvals in data centres and cloud computing also means competition for power, land and skilled staff in the states that host them will continue. Selangor and Johor, the two largest recipients, are where that pressure is most visible.
- Approved investment is not the same as built capacity
- Digital projects dominate the services pipeline
- Johor and Selangor carry most of the total
- Screening is tighter for fast-track treatment
The MIDA numbers also show how much of the investment is domestic. Domestic investment rose 13%, and the approvals are expected to create more than 50,000 jobs, a figure that matters for the states receiving the projects. Whether those jobs materialise depends on how quickly the projects are built. The jobs figure is also a measure of how much of the approved investment is likely to be spent locally.
What to watch next
The pipeline described by BMI, with about 4.6 gigawatts planned or under construction, sets the scale of the power and water decisions that follow. Malaysia's ranking among the top 10 destinations globally also means the country is competing for the same capital as its regional neighbours. Those projects will need power, water and land in the same states that are already drawing the largest approvals.
For operators, the direction is clear: approvals remain available, but they are increasingly conditional on sustainability and long-term commitment. For buyers, the practical question is when the approved capacity is actually built and what supplies its power. The quarter's figures also show that the pipeline is concentrated in a small number of large digital projects, so timing matters more than the headline total.
MIDA chairman Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz leads the agency that published the figures. The next quarterly release will show whether the data centre share of approved investment holds at this level or eases as other projects come through. For the states, the approvals also set expectations about the power and water capacity that will be needed to serve them.
Source: MIDA
