TAIPEI Finance minister Lin Yi-fu left for Malaysia here today as part of Taiwanese efforts to enhance economic ties with Southeast Asia following Asean and China's agreement to form a free trade area, an official said.

Lin will first fly to Penang, a key Taiwanese investment base in Malaysia, and then on Tuesday move on to Kuala Lumpur where he will hold a ministerial-level meeting on trade and investment issues, an economic ministry official said.

"It is the economic ministry's second fact-finding group this year to explore Southeast Asia's investment climate after the government renewed the 'go south' policy," the official said, adding that they last visited the Philippines in October.