Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has reminded leaders from the corporate sector and representatives from embassies not to listen to naysayers who "run down their own country" on economic matters.

At the groundbreaking ceremony of the Malaysia Exposition and Convention Centre (MyExpo) - part of the first phase of the diplomatic enclave in Putrajaya - Najib said his administration had created 2.26 million new jobs in the past seven years.

"Gross National Income has increased by nearly 50 percent. We have kept inflation and unemployment low and maintained healthy growth even at a time of uncertainty for the global economy," said Najib in his address.

To drive home his point, Najib reiterated again that a recent Bloomberg report had described Malaysia and Hong Kong as the biggest growth surprises in Asia.