This book, by providing an excellent examination of US–Malayan economic ties from 1870 to 1957, represents a substantial contribution to the dearth of scholarship on the relationship. It is also valuable in that it focuses on economic relations, unlike earlier studies that have concentrated on the political and security aspects. In particular, the book examines three US multinational enterprises (MNEs) in Malaya: Yukon Gold Company, the United States Rubber Company (USRC) and Ford Malaya. Its inclusion of a separate chapter on the automobile sector sets it apart from other works on Malaya's economy, which deal primarily with the tin and rubber industries.
However, the use of ‘Malaysian’ in the title is misleading, as the book's scope is mainly limited to the pre-independence period, with the post-independence years only covered briefly, in the last chapter of 10 pages. ‘Malayan’ is more appropriate as the country was a British colony throughout the period surveyed, making the US–Malayan relationship indirect and triangular. By 1963, when Malaysia was formed, they had a very different relationship: direct and bilateral as two sovereign nations. Usage of ‘Malaysian’ also entails including US relations with Sabah and Sarawak; analysing the bigger economic role of the indigenous Malays, especially after the 1969 race riots; and tracing US involvement in more recent industries like oil palm and electronics.
Nonetheless, the book has several strengths. One strength is that it is very carefully researched, using a wide variety of primary and secondary sources from libraries and archives in Malaysia, Singapore, the United States, Britain and Canada. Canadian sources are included as ‘US firms used the tactic of investing in Malaya through Canadian subsidiaries in order to placate British reservations towards US investments’ (p. 45). One such firm was Ford Canada, which established Ford Malaya in 1926 to enjoy the same preferential treatment as British-owned firms.
Another strength is that the book is very well organised in eight chapters and includes appendices, figures, tables, notes, a bibliography and an index. Chapter 1, ‘Introduction: The United States, colonial rule and the Malayan economy’ sets the stage for the rest of the book. Chapter 2 then traces ‘US and Malayan connections, 1870–1918’ while Chapter 3 examines ‘Strengthening ties, 1919–1957’. The next three chapters deal, in turn, with US MNEs in the tin, rubber and automobile industries, with Chapter 4 on ‘Mining: Yukon gold to Pacific tin’, Chapter 5 on ‘Plantation: United States rubber company’, and Chapter 6 on ‘Taking the high road: Ford Malaya’. Chapter 7 serves as the ‘Conclusion: Counting the cost’ while Chapter 8 ends with the ‘Epilogue: The future looks bright’.
Yet another strength is that the author accomplishes her aims: ‘to explore and chart the historical development of economic ties’; to investigate to ‘what extent the role of the British colonial administration restricted or stimulated US-Malaya trade and FDI’; to examine ‘the role of local entrepreneurs in the promotion of US business interests’; and to give an ‘assessment of the impact of US trade and investment on Malaya’ (p. 1). For instance, she ably tracks the expanding US–Malayan economic ties. She also proves convincingly that the British colonial administration both restricted and stimulated US–Malaya trade and FDI, the former by opposing monopolies and large corporations and the latter by providing ‘strong government, good legal framework, free trade policies, their common use of English and a well-developed infrastructure’ (p. 147). As for local entrepreneurs, she rightly shows the dominant role of the Chinese, as in the mining industry and as local agents for US firms, and the very small Malay role. Regarding the impact of US trade and investment, she points out that ‘the US continued to purchase more from Malaya than it sold’ (p. 145); that ‘there was a degree of mutual dependence between the US and Malaya’ (p. 145); and that US companies were able to take full advantage of the marketing channels provided by British, ethnic Chinese, and other trade intermediaries. Overall, US FDI was marginal but it was higher in Malaya than elsewhere in Southeast Asia.
The book is especially good at showing the tenacity, innovativeness and creativity of the three US companies in overcoming numerous challenges, from setting up and maintaining their firms, dealing with delays in getting leases, as in mining, to effectively handling the British. They all used their specialised knowledge, technological expertise and financial resources to great advantage. For example, Yukon Gold successfully transformed itself from a gold mining to a tin mining company, in the process introducing the bucket dredge, which revolutionised the tin-mining industry. The USRC ably handled the mixed signals it received from British authorities – the protectionist sentiment from the Colonial Office and British rubber interests and the laissez-faire approach from local British administrators. From a latecomer to the rubber industry, it soon gained a dominant position through economies of scale and scope, ample economic resources, advancements in R&D and technological innovations. Ford Malaya used managerial and technological expertise and ‘exploited locational advantage to compete worldwide’ (p. 139) through its use of Ford Canada and Ford England to evade tariff barriers. It also cleverly fostered Anglo-American cooperation for the marketing and distribution of cars.
On the whole, therefore, the book gives a very good analytical account of the US–Malayan economic relationship in the period covered. Since so many important developments have occurred since 1957, a more up-to-date study is needed. Perhaps this book can spur other scholars to build on its strong foundations.
