TEMCMB-06.01.22

AFTER OMICRON, NEW COVID-19 VARIANT IHU RAISES
FRESH SPECTRE OF PANDEMIC CONCERNS p2

THURSDAY, JANUARY 6, 2022 w w w. t h e e d g e m a r k e t s. c o m

ISSUE 311/2022

CEOMorningBrief
HOME: MACC independent monitoring body says no conflict of interest in
share trading involving Azam Baki p4

Jho Low, parents enter appearance in US$3.78b 1MDB suit p6
Eddie Ong’s takeover offer for Complete Logistic turns unconditional p11
Maybank, MIDF downgrade TNB on higher regulatory risk concerns p13
WORLD: Kazakh protesters torch public buildings, emergency declared, Cabinet resigns p16

Court:Wound up
companies still need
to comply with listing
rules if not delisted yet

Report on Page 3.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 6, 2022 w w w. t h e e d g e m a r k e t s. c o m

ISSUE 311/2022

CEOMorningBrief

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 2 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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ZAHID IZZANI MOHD SAID/THE EDGE

After Omicron,
new Covid-19
variant IHU raises
fresh spectre
of pandemic

concerns

BY TAN SIEW MUNG
theedgemarkets.com

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): The emer- Malaysia on Dec 2, 2021 detected its tist Didier Raoult — nicknamed IHU.
gence of IHU — a new variant of the first case involving the Omicron vari- “The first patient identified with the
SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes the Cov- ant after a South African national tested
id-19 pandemic — appears to have raised positive for it, Health Minister Khairy [IHU] variant was vaccinated and had just
fresh pandemic concerns after the variant Jamaluddin said on Dec 3. returned from Cameroon, IHU researchers
emerged in France recently, news.com.au wrote in a paper published on the medRxiv
reported on Wednesday (Jan 5). “We have done comprehensive con- server in late December where they first
tact tracing,” Khairy said at a press con- drew attention to the atypical mutations,”
It was reported that IHU was first de- ference then. Bloomberg reported.
tected in France last month, but is now Read also:
making international headlines after catch- On Tuesday, Bloomberg reported that Things we need to know about
ing the attention of global experts. the World Health Organisation (WHO) ‘Flurona’ — double infection of
said a coronavirus variant found in France Covid-19 and influenza Click here
“The medical world is on alert yet hasn’t become much of a threat since it Covid-19: New cluster with one
again after a new mutant Covid-19 var- was first identified in November. Omicron variant case detected in
iant emerged in France recently. At least Labuan Click here
12 cases were confirmed near the Mar- The variant “has been on our radar”, Umrah pilgrim becomes first Omicron
seilles area, and it is understood that Abdi Mahamud, a WHO incident man- case in Sabah Click here
many of those patients were hospital- ager on Covid-19, said at a press briefing New Covid-19 cases increase to 3,270
ised with the illness. in Geneva on Tuesday. “That virus had a on Jan 5 Click here
lot of chances to pick up.”
“Variant IHU, which is believed to be
linked with travel to the African nation Bloomberg reported that the IHU var-
of Cameroon, has 46 mutations which iant was identified in 12 people in the
experts fear could mean it is more re- southern Alps around the same time that
sistant to existing vaccines. Omicron was discovered in South Africa
last year.
“However, on a more positive note, the
new strain does not appear to be spreading “The latter mutation (IHU) has since
rapidly,” news.com.au reported. travelled the globe and kindled record
levels of contagion, unlike the French
News on the emergence of IHU fol- one that researchers at the IHU Medi-
lowed the widely-reported concerns due terranee Infection — helmed by scien-
to the Omicron variant of the SARS-
CoV-2 virus.

At the time of writing, websites of the
World Health Organisation and Malay-
sia’s Ministry of Health have yet to pro-
vide updates on IHU.

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 3 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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Court:Wound up companies still
need to comply with listing rules

if not delisted yet

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 5):The Federal Court BY HAFIZ YATIM The judicial review relates to a deci-
on Wednesday ruled that there is no theedgemarkets.com sion by Bursa Malaysia’s Listing Com-
mandatory obligation on Bursa Malay- mittee to take action against him. The
sia Securities Bhd’s part as a stock ex- AMLR has to be action was certified by the exchange’s
change, to immediately delist a company interpreted contextually, Appeals Committee.
when a winding-up order is made against
the listed entity. not textually, the Action was taken on Afrizan for al-
Federal Court judge legedly committing breaches of Rules
“As long as the wound-up company said. Therefore, she said 9.22 (1) and 9.23(1) of the MMLR, for
remains listed, the liquidator, being the a proper interpretation causing and permitting delay in the an-
controlling person of the company, has of the AMLR would nouncement or issuance of the quarterly
to comply with the AMLR (Ace Mar- or annual report of Wintoni.
ket Listing Requirements),” said Federal mean there is no
Court Judge Datuk P Nalini. mandatory obligation Bursa Malaysia had claimed that Afrizan
failed to comply with the MMLR. Howev-
As the AMLR requires financial state- on Bursa’s part to er, his lawyers argued that the Companies
ments of the listed company to be pre- immediately delist a Act prohibits him from complying.
pared, Justice Nalini said the liquidator listed company upon
has to comply with or ensure compliance a winding-up order Under the Companies Act, only di-
with the requirement. made against it (the rectors can prepare the company’s ac-
counts. But since the company is wound
Hence, she added, the directors of a listed company). up, the directors have lost their powers,
wound-up company cannot do anything argued Afrizan’s lawyers.
without the consent or authorisation of there is no mandatory obligation on Bur-
the liquidator who is in control of the sa’s part to immediately delist a listed The COA three-member bench led by
wound-up company. company upon a winding-up order made Justice Datuk Lau Bee Lan ruled that the
against it (the listed company). language used in Rule 16 (2) of MMLR
In a nutshell, the wound-up compa- makes it clear that the delisting is man-
nies which will not be delisted immedi- The bench ordered Afrizan to pay datory, and the exchange does not have
ately are obliged to file financial accounts RM50,000 costs to Bursa. the discretion to maintain the company’s
and annual reports, so that shareholders listing status.
and the investing public will be able to Bursa was represented by Khoo Guan
scrutinise these listed firms’ financials. Huat, Preetha Pillai, Nimalan Devaraja Following that, the appellate court
and Tiang Wen En, while Sukhwinder upheld the decision made by High Court
Justice Nalini said this after a Singh appeared for Afrizan. judge Datuk Nordin Hassan (now COA
three-member bench she chaired allowed Bursa’s appeal was dismissed in judge) in allowing Afrizan’s judicial re-
an appeal by Bursa Malaysia against the 2020 view of Bursa Malaysia’s Listing Com-
Court of Appeal (COA)’s decision in Jan- On Jan 20 last year,the appellate court mittee and Appeals Committee, as he
uary last year that a wound-up company dismissed Bursa’s appeal over Afrizan’s ruled it was ridden with errors and ir-
should be delisted.The other judges on the judicial review application on the wind- rationality.
bench were Federal Court justices Puan ing up of Wintoni Group Bhd.
Sri ZalehaYusof and Datuk Rhodzhariah Justice Nordin, now a Court of Ap-
Bujang. peal judge, ruled that under Rule 16 (2),
the word “shall” is deemed mandatory.
The bench also dismissed liquidator
Datuk Mohd Afrizan Husain’s judicial Rule 16 (2) of the MMLR states that
review application at the High Court. the exchange shall delist a listed com-
pany, in any one of the following cir-
In dismissing Afrizan’s judicial review cumstances:
application and allowing Bursa’s appeal, a) pursuant to a directive, requirement
Justice Nalini said in her broad grounds to
the apex court’s decision that Bursa has a or condition imposed by Securities
statutory duty to protect the interests of the Commission Malaysia (SC), after
investing public, and that in interpreting the which the exchange will notify the
AMLR, or Main Market Listing Require- SC of the decision to delist;
ments (MMLR), the court is required to b) upon the maturity or expiry of a class
take into account Bursa’s statutory duty to of securities;
interpret them in a proper context. c) upon the commencement of a vol-
untary winding-up of a listed corpo-
AMLR has to be interpreted contex- ration in accordance with the Com-
tually, not textually, the Federal Court panies Act; or
judge said. d) upon a winding-up order being made
against a listed company.
Therefore, she said a proper interpre-
tation of the AMLR would mean that

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 4 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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PUTRAJAYA (Jan 5):The Anti-Corrup- MACC fied with Azam’s explanation, it planned
tion Advisory Board (LPPR) — one of independent on informing the matter to the public at
the five independent monitoring bodies monitoring body a later date, however, the issue was pre-
of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Com- says no conflict of maturely raised by former MACC con-
mission (MACC) — has found no crimi- interest in share sultation and corruption prevention pan-
nal conduct or conflict of interest involv- trading involving el (PPPR) member Dr Edmund Terence
ing MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki Gomez.
Azam Baki (pictured) in share trading
done in 2015. Bernama Edmund reportedly resigned as a
member of the PPPR panel, claiming
LPPR Chairman Tan Sri Abu Zahar Azam said the shares were bought that the committee had failed to discuss
Ujang said the board in a special meeting through the open market by his brother reports involving senior MACC officials.
on Nov 24, 2021, had sought Azam’s ex- using his own funds, and the shares of com-
planation over the matter, and the latter panies bought by his brother had nothing Edmund in his resignation letter said
explained that his share trading account to do with the MACC’s investigation. questions arose over the “relationship be-
was used by his brother, Nasir Baki, to tween businesses and law enforcement”,
purchase shares in 2015. “I would like to stress that in this besides the “conflict of interest” involving
share purchase issue, I have senior MACC officials and allegations of
Abu Zahar said the purchase of the not committed any wrong- share ownership.
shares was made on the open market doing, and the allegation
with no conflict of interest, and that the that there is a ‘conflict of Meanwhile, on the claim that Edmund
shares were transferred to Nasir within interest’ on my part as al- had sent a letter to him over the share trad-
the same year. leged by some parties is ing issue involving Azam, Abu Zahar said
unfounded,” he said. he had yet to receive any letter to date.
He said following a lengthy discussion, Abu Zahar said after
the LPPR board members were of the the LPPR received “I will not compromise or protect an-
opinion that Azam had no pecuniary or and was satis- yone in the event of misconduct by an
beneficial interest in the shares. MACC officer, regardless of his or her
Azam: I have position or post.
“LPPR is satisfied with the explana- no interest
tion given, and finds that there is no or benefit in “My stand is to defend and protect the
criminal conduct or conflict of interest the shares image of the MACC, and not to protect its
in the matter,” he said in a special press purchased. officers who commit misconduct,” he said.
conference here onWednesday (Jan 5).
The LPPR was established in accord-
Prior to this, allegations of Azam ance with Section 13 of the Malaysian
having interests and shareholding in Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009
several companies had gone (Act 694). LPPR members are individuals
viral on social media. of high integrity appointed by the Yang
di-Pertuan Agong, who have an excellent
Azam in a separate press track record in public service or achieved
conference after Abu Zahar’s excellence in their respective professions.
ended said he had explained
to the LPPR panel that his Asked whether a Royal Commission
share trading account had of Inquiry (RCI) should be set up on the
been used by his brother for issue, Abu Zahar said a report on the mat-
the latter’s own transactions. ter would be submitted to Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Ismail SabriYaakob.
“I have no interest or
benefit in the shares pur- “Currently, there is no need for an
chased,” Azam said. RCI, but the decision is up to the prime
minister,” he said.

Azam Baki denies having control over many companies

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 5): Malaysian An- Bernama He said the individuals concerned
ti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had also used certain parties to put
chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki commissioner) as well as that of the pressure on the MACC.
(pictured) on Wednesday (Jan 5) de- MACC,” said Azam.
nied allegations that he had control “We have identified who they are and
over many companies, including con- Azam said after seeking the advice of what their agenda is,” he said, adding
glomerates, describing it as a malicious a lawyer, he had decided to take legal that these kinds of attacks were among
allegation. action against those who had tarnished the challenges faced by almost all the
his reputation and that of the MACC. chief commissioners of MACC.
“This is a ‘total lie’ to create a neg-
ative perception against me,” he said He claimed there were efforts by in- “In our line of work, we arrest a lot
in a special press conference here on dividuals with personal interests or with of people, regardless of whether they
Wednesday. a bad agenda against the MACC, who are dignitaries or ordinary people… of
were taking the opportunity to erode course this would anger some parties.
“It is portrayed as if I control a large the public’s trust in the commission by
conglomerate under myself, in order to constantly attacking the office of the “I’ve served for 37 years, I probably
tarnish my reputation as the KP (chief chief commissioner. have a lot of enemies, and it’s likely a
lot of people don’t like me,” he said.

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 5 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): 1Malaysia De- Former those concerning the power plant deals and
velopment Bhd’s (1MDB) former chief fi- 1MDB CFO: the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) project.
nancial officer (CFO) Azmi Tahir told the I wouldn’t say
High Court here onWednesday that during I doubted 1MDB To recap, 1MDB had spent RM12.08
his tenure in 1MDB, he was “worried” about management’s billion to pay for power assets which in-
the decisions of the 1MDB management. decisions, but clude RM8.5 billion forTanjong Energy Plc,
I was worried RM2.35 billion for Genting Sanyen Pow-
During Azmi’s cross-examination by er Sdn Bhd, and RM1.2 billion for a 75%
former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s stake in Jimah Energy Ventures Sdn Bhd.
lawyer Datuk Hariharan Singh Tara Sin- The troubled fund had borrowed a total of
gh in the 1MDB-Tanore trial, the former RM21.8 billion to finance the purchases via
1MDB CFO said he questioned 1MDB bond issuances, bank loans and bridging
management’s decisions, but only went as loans, but ended up only selling the assets
far as having “discussions” with manage- for RM9.83 billion to China’s state-owned
ment in raising his concerns. China General Nuclear Power Corp.

Hariharan: [In your witness state- BY IZZUL IKRAM & HAFIZ YATIM Najib allegedly instructed 1MDB to
ment,] you say “curiga berkenaan keputu- theedgemarkets.com not touch funds
san”. Can you give any example of deci- The 47-year-old witness added that anoth-
sion made by [former 1MDB CEO] Datuk SHAHRIN YAHYA/THE EDGE er “worry” of his concerned 1MDB’s lack
Shahrol [Azral Ibrahim Halmi] that you of access to funds, adding that there was
know was not in the best interest of the Azmi: We talked about it, but when no explanation on why such an inhibition
company i.e. 1MDB or its subsidiary? you work with a company, of course you was in place to restrict its usage.
do not always agree with what the man-
Azmi: Curiga here also means ‘I’m wor- agement does. Azmi said he had allegedly been told
ried, I question why, how’, things like that, by his then 1MDB superiors, including
just to be clear. So for example, it doesn’t Hariharan: Did you put any memo Hazem, that Najib was the one who gave
mean that it is not in the company’s best protesting to the BoD, Shahrol or Hazem? the directive to not use 1MDB funds.
interest, for example you do a bond with
Tanjung Plc, then you do a bond with Mas- Azmi: Not memo, but discussions yes. “One [instance] that was clearly quite
tika (Genting Bhd), so obviously I would Earlier, when answering questions from pivotal for [1MDB] at that time, as I said
question “how we would pay for all this, the prosecution,Azmi told the court that he we had projects like theTRX but we could
what is this plan?” had confided with Hazem about his doubts not access the money.
or concern over some of the management’s
Hariharan: How about [former and board’s decisions and these included “I remember Hazem telling me he went
1MDB CEO Mohd] Hazem [Abd Rah- to see [then 1MDB chairman]Tan Sri Che
man], so what decision of Hazem’s were Lodin Wok Kamaruddin, to convey this
you ‘curiga’ or worried [about]? matter that we need to access this money,
these funds are overseas, and according to
Azmi: At that point in time, probably Hazem, he came back to me and said Tan
the next bond, the US$3 billion bond that Sri Lodin met with the PM and asked,
we had to raise. but he was told not to touch [the funds].

Hariharan: Now when you say that you “That is one instance I asked ‘but why?’,”
were worried, surely as a person who has he told Judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Se-
gone through various experiences as you querah, who was presiding over the case.
confirmed [earlier], you would prepare your-
self, and if there were any issues, you would Najib faces four counts of abuse of pow-
take measures to protest, that was your earli- er for allegedly using his position as prime
er evidence. So in circumstances where you minister, finance minister and chairman
find decisions of theirs that worry you, did of 1MDB’s board of advisers to receive
you take any measures to either face them gratification worth RM2.28 billion.
or inform the board of directors [BoD]?
Najib also faces 21 counts of money
laundering involving over RM4.3 billion.

Ex-1MDB CFO: I do not know why I was not charged

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Former BY HAFIZ YATIM & IZZUL IKRAM responsible for the finances of the com-
1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) theedgemarkets.com pany. The witness agreed with the de-
chief financial officer (CFO) Azmi Ta- fence counsel that he was investigated
hir said he does not know why he was The 12th prosecution witness was asked by the police in 2015, and only called
not charged with any offence related to by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Com-
the company, despite the fact that some Razak's counsel Datuk Hariharan Singh mission (MACC) in 2016.
of his subordinates such as his deputy Tara Singh at the High Court why sev-
Terence Geh Choh Heng were charged. eral individuals, including Geh, 1MDB's Despite billions of ringgit in funds
general counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan and leaving the company, there was no charge
Azmi, 47, had on Wednesday con- fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho (Jho levelled against Azmi nor was there any
firmed that there were no criminal charg- Low), were charged while he was not. suit filed against him; he acknowledged
es against him, adding that: "I do not not receiving the 1MDB suit.
know why I was not charged." This was despite the fact that Azmi was
CONTINUES ON PAGE 6

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 6 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Rogue fi- Jho Low, parents total of US$3.78 billion against the six
nancier Low Taek Jho (pictured) — better enter appearance defendants.
known as Jho Low — and his parents Tan
Sri Larry Low Hock Peng and Puan Sri in US$3.78b This compares to the original writ filed
Goh Gaik Ewe had on Wednesday (Jan 1MDB suit last May 7, where 1MDB and its subsid-
5) entered an appearance to the US$3.78 iaries sought a claim of US$1.4 billion
billion (RM15.85 billion) suit filed by BY HAFIZ YATIM against Jho Low, Hock Peng, May Lin
1Malaysia Development Bhd and four theedgemarkets.com and Tan.
of its subsidiary companies at the High
Court. 1MDB and its subsidiaries — 1MDB
Energy Holdings Ltd, 1MDB Energy Ltd,
The trio will be represented by solici- 1MDB Energy (Langat) Ltd and Global
tors Messrs Valen & Oh. Diversified Investment Co Ltd (formerly
1MDB Global Investments Ltd) — named
A case management of the matter was Goh and Taek Szen as additional defend-
done on Wednesday before High Court ants in the amended writ and statement
deputy registrar Norafidah Idris. of claim.

1MDB’s counsel Siva Kumar Kanaga- In the statement of claim, 1MDB al-
sabai from Skrine confirmed this with th- leged that a sum of US$3.78 billion was
eedgemarkets.com on Wednesday. received by Jho Low from 1MDB, an-
other US$2.795 billion by Tan, while
“They are to file defence by Jan 26, US$979.852 million was received by
2022 and the next case management is Hock Peng.
fixed on Feb 9,” Kumar added.
Meanwhile, US$3.5 million was alleg-
Besides the three family members, edly received by May Lin and US$27.5
Jho Low’s sister May Lin and broth- million by Taek Szen, in addition to
er Taek Szen, along with his associate US$1.695 million worth of jewellery by
Eric Tan Kim Loong were also named Goh.
as defendants.
The plaintiffs are seeking a return of
The Edge reported in July last year that the funds in addition to damages to be
1MDB had amended its writ and filed assessed by the court.
a 48-page statement of claim to seek a

FROM PAGE 5 as they were asking questions about Jho today, and he does not know anything
Low and Loo. about it.
Hariharan showed Azmi the charges
levelled by the prosecution against Jho “I was asked why 'the large transfer Azmi dismissed the lawyer’s assertion
Low, Loo and Geh, which the witness of funds' happened with the agreements that since Jho Low had been charged in
said he had no knowledge of. referred to during those years,” he said. absentia, then “you must also be seen as
dishonestly assisting the fugitive busi-
Azmi also agreed that despite not Hariharan then referred to a report nessman”.
holding any position in 1MDB, Jho published by The Edge in December
Low was also charged with money 2018 which mentioned that Geh was The witness also disagreed that
laundering. charged. Azmi said he did not see the he dishonestly assisted Jho Low, but
article. agreed that his name was removed
However, he maintained that Jho as one of the seven defendants in the
Low stood as Najib's proxy in the state- The lawyer tried to put it to Azmi suit.
owned company. that besides Geh, he too had dominion
over 1MDB's finances. However, the This led to the lawyer suggesting
“He [Jho Low] was part of the gov- witness refuted this, asserting that Jho that the reason Azmi’s name was re-
ernment's framework and representative Low had played a role in the fund's fi- moved was so that he could provide
of the shareholder [Finance Ministry in nancial affairs. incriminating evidence against the
1MDB] Datuk Seri Najib,” Azmi said former premier and former finance
when prodded by Hariharan. Nonetheless, he concurred that he minister, which the witness strongly
may have co-signed some of the deals denied.
The former CFO disagreed with the which were entered into by 1MDB, such
lawyer's suggestion that Jho Low had as the acquisition of power plants and Besides Azmi, the six other names
nothing to do with the Najib. the construction of the Tun Razak Ex- which were removed from the 1MDB
change (TRX) development here. main suit were former directors Tan
Azmi is testifying in Najib's trial over Sri Che Lodin Wok Kamaruddin, Tan
abuse of power and money laundering “However, I did not make the deci- Sri Ismee Ismail, Tan Sri Ong Gim
charges in relation to US$680 million sion myself and Jho Low played a big- Huat and Ashvin Jethanand Valiram,
(RM2.67 billion) of 1MDB funds. ger part in those decisions,” he added. former 1MDB CEOs Datuk Shah-
rol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Mohd
Azmi: Yes, Geh was working under me Witness not served with 1MDB suit Hazem Abdul Rahman.
During the cross-examination, Hari- When Hariharan referred to the RM8 Read also: 1MDB’s former CFO
haran pointed out that Geh was Azmi's billion suit filed by 1MDB in May last denies he had full control over company’s
deputy. year, Azmi said he had not been served finances Click here
with the suit for breach of fiduciary
The witness said when the authorities duty, conspiracy, fraudulent, dishon-
— including the MACC — questioned est assistance and other allegations until
him in 2016 and 2017, he did not know
who would be charged at that point,

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 7 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 8 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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KPMG in final stage of executing
RM333 mil settlement agreement with
Malaysian govt over 1MDB audit issues

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): KPMG PLT BY HAFIZ YATIM mer subsidiary SRC International Sdn Bhd.
is said to be in the final stage of executing theedgemarkets.com In contrast, Deloitte, who replaced
its settlement agreement with 1Malaysia
Development Bhd (1MDB) and the Ma- ments for financial years ended March 31, KPMG later, audited both 1MDB and
laysian government, which would see the 2010, 2011 and 2012. SRC and earned an audit fee of RM9 mil-
audit firm pay US$80 million, equivalent lion. Deloitte also agreed to pay up US$80
to about RM333 million, to the Malaysian Two months later, MoF announced that million to settle any fiduciary claims re-
government. KPMG had agreed to pay US$80 million lating to its audit of 1MDB.
(RM333 million) to resolve all claims re-
It is learnt that the agreement, dated lated to its audit of 1MDB. At the time, “It is understood that Messrs Rosli
Dec 16 last year, is to be stamped this KPMG said the proposed settlement would Dahlan Saravana Partnership had nego-
month. The expected settlement sum of enable all parties involved to move forward. tiated this settlement with KPMG and
RM333 million is to resolve all claims re- secured one of the highest settlements
lated to its fiduciary duties in auditing the “The court has fixed another case man- with an audit firm,” a source said.
accounts of the strategic investment fund. agement on Jan 20, for parties to update the
settlement. If the matter is settled before theedgemarkets.com also contacted Rosli
The expected settlement was disclosed that, the plaintiffs can file a notice of dis- Dahlan, who confirmed the same.
to the High Court following a case man- continuance and the case management fixed
agement called for 1MDB, the Minister of on Jan 20 can be vacated,” a source famil- “Yes, this settlement was announced
Finance Inc, the government, along with iar with the matter told theedgemarkets.com. by the Finance Ministry (MoF) in Sep-
1MDB’s subsidiaries — 1MDB Energy tember last year.We are carrying through
Holdings Ltd, 1MDB Energy Ltd, 1MDB KPMG took over the audit of 1MDB in the legal process and the Finance Minis-
Energy (Langat) Ltd, Global Diversified 2010 from Ernst & Young, the investment ter will make further announcements on
Investment Company Ltd (formerly known fund’s first auditor who was sacked after it this,” he said without elaborating.
as 1MDB Global Investment Company refused to sign off on 1MDB’s financial state-
Ltd), and the audit firm onTuesday (Jan 4). ments. On stepping in, KPMG signed off It is understood that the settlement
1MDB’s accounts for FY10,FY11 and FY12. was achieved due to KPMG’s coopera-
1MDB and its subsidiaries were rep- tion on the matter.
resented by lawyers from Shearn Delam- But in 2013, KPMG was dismissed af-
ore & Co during the case management ter it refused to sign off on the fund’s 2013 “What lingers is the role of PriceWater-
before High Court deputy registrar Id- accounts. It was then replaced by Deloitte. houseCoopers (PWC), which is Goldman
amasliza Maarof. Sachs’ global auditor, and who is now the
During the 1MDB criminal trial involv- administrator of 1MDB. This has baffled
Sources indicated that the settlement ing former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib observers.
agreement has to be executed, before the Razak, the court was told by the company’s
suit that the Malaysian government and chief financial officerAzmiTahir that KPMG’s “There is now even talk that PwC is
1MDB initiated against KPMG in July last removal was instructed by Najib himself. advising the Finance Ministry to possibly
year can be officially withdrawn. wind up both 1MDB and SRC, after the
Settlement one of the largest by an two entities commenced legal actions just
In the suit, the government, MoF audit firm last year against those allegedly involved
Inc, and 1MDB and its subsidiaries According to sources, KPMG is paying one in defrauding them,” another source said
sued KPMG through its 44 directors for of the highest settlements involving an au- on condition of anonymity.
US$5.64 billion for alleged breaches of dit firm operating in the country. KPMG Read also: Court sets Feb 9 to hear Axiata,
contract and negligence in the audit and only audited 1MDB, for which it earned Celcom’s bid to strike out suit by three
certification of 1MDB’s financial state- RM415,000 in audit fees, and not its for- Tune Talk shareholders Click here

THURSDAY JANUARY 6, 2022 9 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

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IHH Healthcare as the suit involves 28 named defendants Agrobank
to file motion to and 20 non-party defendants. appoints
dismiss US$6.5 bil Tengku Ahmad
suit by Emqore “However, as at the date of this an- Badli Shah
nouncement, the suit is not expected to as president
Envesecure have any business, operational or financial and CEO
impact on IHH Healthcare as IHH Health-
Bernama care believes that it has strong grounds for BY JUSTIN LIM
dismissal of the suit,” it said. theedgemarkets.com
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): IHH Health-
care Bhd intends to file a motion to dis- On June 16, 2020, Emqore Envesecure KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Agro-
miss the amended complaint by Emqore filed a suit against IHH Healthcare on al- bank has appointed Tengku Ahmad
Envesecure Private Capital Trust for the legations relating to the issuance of the Badli Shah Raja Hussin as its presi-
suit involving damages in excess of US$6.5 shares of Fortis Healthcare Ltd to IHH dent and chief executive officer.
billion. Healthcare’s subsidiary around 2018.
In a statement, the development
IHH Healthcare said it has strong Emqore Envesecure broadly alleges financial institution said Ahmad Bad-
grounds for seeking dismissal of Emqore that it has purportedly suffered losses as li has more than 29 years of extensive
Envesecure’s claims on three principal the defendants had allegedly conspired experience in banking and finance.
grounds, namely lack of personal juris- to frustrate a proposed share acquisition
diction, forum non-conveniens and failure transaction between Fortis Healthcare Prior to joining Agrobank, he held
to state a claim for relief. and Emqore Envesecure’s supposed pre- various leadership roles in Pelaburan
decessors. MARA Bhd (PMB), Kuwait Finance
“IHH Healthcare intends to defend House and HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd.
vigorously against the claims,” it said in a IHH Healthcare was served on July 26,
filing with Bursa Malaysia onWednesday. 2021 with Emqore Envesecure’s original Agrobank chairman Datuk
complaint and Emqore Envesecure’s mo- Mustapha Buang said Ahmad Badli’s
IHH Healthcare said it is not possible tion to amend its original complaint pur- broad experience in strategic plan-
to determine the estimated potential lia- suant to the United States (US) Racket- ning, business development, legal
bility to the company arising from the suit eer, Influenced and Corrupt Organisations and syariah compliant financing cou-
Act against 28 named defendants and 20 pled with his strong leadership skill
non-party defendants. and vision, will further strengthen the
bank’s position as the leading agricul-
The motion to amend was pending ad- ture financial institution in Malaysia.
judication until Dec 3, 2021, when Emqore
Envesecure’s amended complaint was filed Meanwhile, Ahmad Badli said
at the US District Court. Agrobank is an important development
financial institution to shape a success-
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): AirAsia AirAsia says ful future for the agriculture sector.
Group Bhd said onWednesday (Jan 5) the name change
proposed name change to Capital A Bhd for new corporate “Agrobank has shown great per-
aims to give the group a new corporate formance in fulfilling its mandated
identity that offers a better reflection of its identity role especially during the Covid-19
core business and future undertakings in pandemic and has grown tremen-
tandem with the company’s rapid transfor- BY SHAZNI ONG dously ever since. That speaks vol-
mation from an airline into a digital travel theedgemarkets.com umes of the leadership of the bank
and lifestyle services entity. and the dedication of the bank’s em-
proposed change of name to be tabled at ployees as a whole.With the bank’s
The proposal will be tabled at an ex- the forthcoming EGM,” it said. new SBP kickstarting last year to-
traordinary general meeting (EGM) on Jan gether with a solid management
27, 2022 to seek shareholders’ approval. AirAsia Group said the virtual EGM team and dedicated employees, I
will be held on Jan 27 at 3pm via live have a high degree of confidence in
In a circular to shareholders onWednes- streaming from the online meeting the strength of Agrobank,” he added.
day, AirAsia Group said the structur- platform using the remote participa-
al change will facilitate strong projected tion and voting facilities provided by
growth in the company’s businesses. Tricor Investor & Issuing House Ser-
vices Sdn Bhd.
“We believe that the new company
name will further enhance and be in line At Bursa Malaysia’s 12.30pm break
with our purpose to connect people and on Wednesday, AirAsia Group’s share
transform lives. price settled down one sen or 1.23%
at 80 sen, which gives the company a
“It will also set the tone of the group market capitalisation of about RM3.05
as it expands into new horizons and allay billion based on the group’s 3.81 billion
concerns of being a group that was in- issued shares.
trinsically an airline,” said AirAsia Group.
AirAsia Group saw 3.77 million shares
“Our board, after having considered changing hands.
all aspects of the proposed change of
name, is of the opinion that the proposed
change of name is in the best interests of
our company. Accordingly, our board rec-
ommends that you VOTE IN FAVOUR
of the special resolution pertaining to the

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Palm oil She said despite similar obstacles that the Maybank Research:
industry to industry might face this year, industrial play- Supply disruption
maintain positive ers are optimistic that they would be able expected to support
performance to meet the production level for the year to
in 2022, says cater for the current markets like India and CPO prices
China as well as supporting the government’s
Zuraida ambition to penetrate new markets. Bernama

Bernama Meanwhile, the minister said 2022 would KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Maybank
also be a year for the ministry to strengthen Research is positive on regional planta-
PUTRAJAYA (Jan 5):The palm oil industry, its promotional efforts for global recognition tions as fear of supply disruption due
being the fourth largest contributor to the of Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) to sporadic flooding across the country
Malaysian economy, is expected to maintain as Malaysia’s sustainability standard. will continue to support crude palm oil
its 2021 performance in 2022, backed by var- (CPO) prices.
ious marketing and promotional efforts to be “A 360-degree marketing and promo-
conducted by the Ministry of Plantation In- tional programme to ensure visibility and In a note on Wednesday (Jan 5),
dustries and Commodities and its agencies. understanding of MSPO will be undertak- Maybank said Malaysia’s CPO output
en, ranging from engagements with key gov- for December 2021 is estimated to hit
Minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin said ernment officials, seminars and talks with 1.45 million tonnes, a decline of 11%
she is optimistic that the industry would be trade associations and the hotel, restaurant month-to-month, bringing output to
able to achieve its goal with palm oil produc- and cafe (HORECA) sector, as well as road- 18.1 million tonnes in 2021.
tion likely reaching about 20 million tonnes. shows and social media advertising for gen-
eral consumers. “With record prices, we expect
“We still have the potential of meeting the growers to deliver another set of ster-
number and we would still be able to cater “We see this as a long-term endeavour ling results in the fourth quarter of
for the global vegetable oil market. that will start with our neighbouring coun- 2021,” it added.
tries and the ripple effect will finally be seen
“And with lower supply amid high de- on products proudly carrying our MSPO On the CPO price, Maybank said
mand, we will still be able to enjoy high crude logo, an indication that the sustainability the Futures CPO price curves on Bur-
palm oil (CPO) prices,” she told reporters at standard has gained international stature,” sa Malaysia Derivatives have trended
the Reach and Remind, Friends of the In- she said. higher since March 2020.
dustry Seminar 2022 and Dialogue organ-
ised by the Malaysian Palm Oil Council on Zuraida also said that in May this year, On the ongoing rainy season, it add-
Wednesday (Jan 5). four new countries — Colombia, Ghana, ed that estate operations were disrupt-
Honduras and Papua New Guinea — will ed, with no harvesting or road access to
She said last year’s successes and ac- become full members of the Council of Palm the mills were affected for several days
complishments were accompanied by new Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC). in the parts of Selangor, Pahang, Mel-
challenges. aka, Negeri Sembilan, Johor,Tereng-
She said the inclusion of the new members ganu, Kelantan, and Sabah.
“Due to the global shutdown of borders as would undoubtedly bolster the organisation’s
a result of the Covid-19 outbreak, obtaining credibility and ability to pursue the interests “We understand yield losses have
foreign labour has become difficult,” she said. of palm oil and voice out its stand against been manageable thus far; compen-
the European Union’s unfair treatment of sated by high CPO prices. However,
She said palm oil production was severely the palm oil industry. the sector is still not out of the woods
impacted since the plantation worker short- as the current rainy season is forecast
fall, estimated at 75,000, caused harvesting “We hope that the CPOPC will empha- to last till March 2022.
activities to be delayed and lowered the qual- sise the necessity of cooperation to achieve
ity of the fruit bunches harvested. mutual objectives and defend the industry “Any subsequent wave of floods or
against recurring negative perceptions and any prolonged floods could severely
The minister said to overcome this prob- false claims in order to safeguard the inter- damage the infrastructures and further
lem, the government had agreed to employ ests of its member countries. disrupt operations,” it added.
32,000 foreign workers with strict compli-
ance with the outlined standard operating As of November 2021, total exports of Read also: Malaysia end-Dec palm
procedures. Malaysian palm oil and its derivatives stood oil stocks seen at five-month low as
at 22.14 million tonnes and due to high palm output plunges Click here
oil prices, total revenue increased by 40% to
RM91.4 billion as compared to 2020.

India retained its position as the number
one destination for Malaysian palm oil ex-
ports with 3.2 million tonnes.

Malaysia aims to fully implement B20 biodiesel mandate by year-end

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Malay- BY MEI MEI CHU imposed to contain coronavirus out-
sia plans to implement its nationwide Reuters breaks.
adoption of the B20 palm oil biofu-
el programme by the end of 2022, fuel with a 20% palm oil component — “We will do it stage-by-stage basis
the country’s palm oil board said on known as B20 — for the transport sec- depending on the government’s finan-
Wednesday. tor was first rolled out in January 2020 cial capabilities,” Ravi Muthayah, the
but faced delays due to movement curbs commodities ministry’s secretary gen-
The mandate to manufacture bio- eral said during a seminar.

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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): The condi- Eddie Ong’s ent advisor MainStreet Advisers Sdn Bhd
tional voluntary takeover offer on Com- takeover offer advised shareholders to accept the offer,
plete Logistic Services Bhd (CLSB) by for Complete saying the RM2.50 offer was deemed “fair
its major shareholder Datuk Eddie Ong Logistic turns and reasonable”.
Choo Meng (ultimate offeror) and his unconditional
special purpose vehicle Hextar Tech Sdn MainStreet Advisers said the offer price
Bhd (offeror) has turned unconditional on BY JUSTIN LIM is equal to the last transacted market price
Wednesday (Jan 5), with both now holding theedgemarkets.com of RM2.50 on the latest practicable date
a more than 50% stake in CLSB. (LPD) of Dec 24, and represents a slight
for acceptance for at least 14 days from discount of one sen or 0.4% to CLSB’s
In a press statement, CLSB said both Wednesday, which is up to 5pm on Jan five-day volume-weighted average share
offeror and the ultimate offeror holds 19, 2022. price (VWAP) of RM2.51 up to the LPD.
55.21% stake or 71.03 million shares in
CLSB as of 5pm on Wednesday. CLSB received the conditional volun- However, it said the offer price rep-
tary offer on Dec 7, 2021 from Ong and resents a premium of 96 sen or approx-
“Accordingly, the offer has met the HextarTech (formerly known as Get Asia imately 62.34% over CLSB shares’ esti-
acceptance condition and the offer has Group Sdn Bhd) to acquire the remain- mated value, which is about RM1.54 per
become wholly-unconditional on Jan 5, ing ordinary shares in CLSB not already share based on the realised net asset value
2022,” it added. owned by them at RM2.50. (RNAV) valuation method.

This means Ong and HextarTech have Subsequently, on Dec 31, independ- The firm added that the asset-based
acquired 26.1% stake or 33.58 million approach using RNAV is the most appro-
shares after the offer was launched. Pre- priate valuation method to arrive at the fair
viously, Ong holds 37.45 million shares value of CLSB shares.
in CLSB, representing about 29.11% of
CLSB’s issued shares. CLSB’s shares closed one sen or 0.4%
higher to settle at RM2.52 onWednesday,
As such, CLSB said the offeror and ul- valuing the company at a market capital-
timate offeror shall keep the offer open isation of RM324 million.

Maybank Asset THE EDGE FILE PHOTO
Management
partnersT. Rowe
Price to launch
China Equity

Fund

Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Maybank As- Ahmad Najib: We are the first asset management company in Malaysia to offer this first-of-its-kind
set Management Group Bhd’s (MAMG) fund where we seek to uncover the hidden gems of China’s economic transformation.
subsidiary, Maybank Asset Management
Sdn Bhd, has launched the first-of-its-kind “By extending our reach beyond the top has over 13 years of investment experience
China Equity Fund which focuses beyond 100 stocks into a universe of over 5,500 un- at the global asset manager, MAMG said.
the 100 largest Chinese stocks. tapped stocks, this unique pivot provides us
with an unconstrained All-China investment Meanwhile, Elsie Chan, Head of Distri-
Maybank Asset Management had part- approach to pick the best and most valu- bution for Asia ex-Japan at T. Rowe Price,
nered with global investment firmT. Rowe able upcoming companies, coupled with said China is a deep market with over 5,500
Price to offerT. Rowe Price’s premier Chi- our environmental, social, and governance onshore and offshore-listed companies, of-
na-focused equity strategy to Malaysian in- fundamentals to ensure business sustaina- fering a huge opportunity set to investors.
vestors via the MAMG China Evolution bility,” he said.
Equity Fund, the group said. “It remains a fertile hunting ground for
The fund will leverage T. Rowe Price’s investors seeking sustainable businesses and
In a statement on Wednesday (Jan 5), dedicated China equity investment strate- potential excess return opportunity through
MAMG Chief Executive Officer Ahmad gy, and focus on the under-explored 98% bottom-up fundamental research.
Najib Nazlan said the group is presenting of the opportunity set, to identify the future
yet another innovative product for Malay- winners on the right side of China’s new “We are pleased to partner with Maybank
sian investors to kick off the new year, with phase of economic growth which focuses Asset Management to offer this unique in-
MAMG China Evolution Equity Fund. on quality and innovation. vestment strategy for investors in Malaysia
to complement their investment portfolios
“We are the first asset management com- This strategy is managed byWenli Zheng, and pursue the attractive but overlooked
pany in Malaysia to offer this first-of-its-kind Hong Kong-based portfolio manager who opportunities amid China’s economy up-
fund where we seek to uncover the hidden grade,” he added.
gems of China’s economic transformation.

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LBS Bina Group achieves
RM1.575b in property sales last year,

sets RM1.6b target for 2022

BY FATIN NAJIHAH
theedgemarkets.com

PETALING JAYA (Jan 5): LBS Bina Lim (middle) with (from left) LBS Bina Group executive directors Lucas Lim Kim Kiat,
Group Bhd achieved RM1.575 billion Datuk Cynthia Lim, Datuk Seri Daniel Lim Hock Sing and MGB Bhd CEO and Executive Director
in property sales in 2021, surpassing its
RM1.2 billion target. Datuk Richard Lim Lit Chek at the LBS 2022 media briefing.

In a media briefing onWednesday (Jan rey terraced house in Bandar Putera In- In addition, the developer has unbilled
5), LBS Bina announced that its property dah, Johor (239 units with a total GDV of sales of about RM2.304 billion, which are
sales target for 2022 is RM1.6 billion, to RM108 million). expected to provide clear earnings visibil-
be achieved by 14 planned launches that ity over the next two to three years. It also
will cover the KlangValley, Johor, Pahang In 2021, LBS Bina launched 3,344 garnered strong property sales with the aid
and Perak.This will amount to 3,733 units units worth RM1.6 billion, which include of digital marketing initiatives and the use
with a gross development value (GDV) of developments across KITA @ Cyber- of its IBS (Industrialised Building System)
RM1.77 billion. south, LBS Alam Perdana, Bukit Jalil and precast system. Other contributors include
Prestige Residence in Seri Kembangan itsVirtual Property Page and digital cam-
LBS Bina Executive ChairmanTan Sri within the Klang Valley. Other launches paigns such as the Ox-picious 8, Raikan
Lim Hock San said that even with a tough include terraced houses in the Bandar Rezeki Bersama LBS, Vacci-Nation Bo-
2021, the group still managed to surpass Putera Indah township in Batu Pahat nanza and Fabulous 20-21 Lucky Draw.
its sales target by 31%. and new phases at Taman Kinding Flo-
ra, Chemor. To kickstart the year, LBS Bina has
“We are cautiously optimistic that the launched the Bring Happiness Home
property market will bounce back this Lim shared: “LBS Bina is in full sup- campaign from Jan 1 to Feb 28, which
year… We also successfully handed over port of Selangor government’s initiatives will reward customers with a total of
vacant possession of 2,570 units worth to develop affordable housing for the gen- RM438,888 Chinese NewYear angpows.
RM1.3 billion,” he added, highlighting that eral public.This is evidenced by LBS’ joint This campaign offers furnishing packag-
it is great to be able to provide affordable partnership with the state government es, low booking fees, loyalty rewards, flexi
homes to the community. on the Rumah Selangorku Idaman MBI payment schemes and zero exit fees. Addi-
project to deliver 7,210 affordable homes tionally, legal fees and stamp duty on loan
Lim also announced that the Klang across six locations with a total GDV of agreements will be waived for all home-
Valley provided the highest sales contri- RM2.01 billion. buyers when they purchase from a selec-
bution in 2021. tion of LBS Bina’s residential properties.
“LBS Bina targets to launch four Ru-
“[For the Klang Valley area], LBS mah Selangorku Idaman MBI (projects) “Enhancing the stakeholder value has
Bina intends to launch 2,604 units with in 2022, namely Idaman BSP in Bandar [also] been a priority for us and we will
a total GDV of RM1.11 billion this year. Saujana Putra, Idaman Cahaya in Shah continue to maintain our dividend policy
Specifically for the KITA @ Cybersouth Alam, Idaman Sari in Puchong and Ida- to pay out at least 30% of the profit after
township, LBS will launch 2,128 units man Melur in Cybersouth. Whereas, Id- tax,” said Lim.
with RM853 in GDV. Within KITA @ aman KITA @ Cybersouth and Idaman
Cybersouth, LBS aims to develop KITA Perdana in Bandar Puncak Alam are sched- As for the Home Ownership Campaign,
Sejati serviced apartments, KITA Be- uled to launch in 2023”. Lim agreed that it should be extended
stari single- and double-storey terraced since the scheme has a positive impact on
houses and double-storey townhouses LBS Bina also announced it has 18 on- the industry. He also shared that building
in 2022,” Lim shared. going development projects with an esti- material prices are increasing, hence people
mated GDV of RM5.3 billion.The group’s are likely to only focus on buying existing
In addition, Lim also stated that there landbank stood at approximately 2,744 projects and not new ones.
is a plan to launch a new phase of Melodi acres as at Dec 31, 2021.
Perdana serviced apartments at the LBS
Alam Perdana township (321 units with a
total GDV of RM120 million) and Astella
at D’Island Residence (155 units with a
total GDV of RM132 million).

Other new projects include Bayu Hills
apartment in Genting Highlands (642
units with a total GDV of RM492 mil-
lion),Taman Kinding Flora single-storey
cluster link and terraced houses in Chem-
or, Perak (248 units with a total GDV of
RM64 million), as well as the Emerald
Garden 3 single-storey terraced houses,
Royal Garden double-storey semi-dee
houses and Laman Bayu 4 double-sto-

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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Maybank In- Maybank, flect the emerging regulatory concern.
vestment Bank Bhd and MIDF Amanah MIDF On Friday (Dec 31, 2021),TNB said
Investment Bank Bhd have downgraded
their Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) share downgrade in a Bursa Malaysia filing that the gov-
recommendations and target prices (TP) TNB on higher ernment had also decided to continue the
over higher regulatory risk concerns. regulatory risk implementation of the Imbalance Cost
Pass-Through (ICPT) mechanism and
This came about after TNB said the concerns maintain an ICPT rebate of two sen/
government has decided to go on with kWh currently implemented for all cus-
current parameters of the incentive base BY SYAFIQAH SALIM tomers including domestic customers
regulation for Regulatory Period 2 Exten- theedgemarkets.com with monthly electricity consumption of
sion, and continue the current electricity 300kWh and below, effective from Jan 1,
tariff schedule, effective from Saturday RM9.60 from RM12 previously. 2022 until further notice.
(Jan 1, 2022) until further notice. “While we understand the govern-
TNB said domestic customers refer
MIDF analyst Hafriz Hezry wrote in ment’s rationale (politically challenging to residential customers.
a note on Wednesday (Jan 5) that MIDF for a tariff hike amid the current floods),
downgraded its TNB share recommen- the move would inevitably raise regulato- “TNB also wishes to inform that
dation to neutral from buy and lowered ry concerns for TNB,” Tan said. the impact of ICPT implementation,
its target (TP) for the utility to RM9.55 based on the Regulatory Implementa-
from RM11.80 previously as the decision Hafriz thinks “prospects of a valua- tion Guidelines, is neutral on TNB and
to delay the tariff review came as a sur- tion re-rating for TNB could be pushed will not have any effect to its business
prise. Hafriz added that potential market out further” as MIDF incorporates operations and financial position,” the
perception of the latest development as higher risk premium into its discount- utility said.
a regulatory risk to TNB may cap upside ed cash flow valuation for TNB to re-
for the stock’s price in the near-term. At Bursa on Wednesday,TNB’s share
price fell two sen or 0.22% at 2.34pm to
At Maybank, analystTan ChiWei wrote RM9.16 for a market capitalisation of
in a note on Monday (Jan 3) that Maybank about RM52.3 billion.
downgraded itsTNB share recommenda-
tion to hold from buy with a lower TP at TNB has 5.71 billion issued shares,
according to its latest quarterly finan-
cial report.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Hong Leong Hong Leong Recovery in smartphone demand
Investment Bank (HLIB) on Wednesday sees ‘another along with communication segments are
(Jan 5) reiterated its overweight call on the solid year’ for expected to be the major growth driver
Malaysian technology sector as it expects for the technology industry on the back
the industry to experience multi-year earn- Malaysian of 5G proliferation, according to Tan.
ings growth on fundamental exponential technology sector
demand and government incentives. Next will be HPC supported by robust
BY TAN SIEW MUNG investments in cloud, cryptocurrency and
HLIB analyst Tan J Young wrote in a theedgemarkets.com metaverse, he said.
note that HLIB maintains its tactical po-
sition in favour of front-end players as According to him, HLIB expected the In technology-sector terminology,
many countries rushed to develop their US dollar to be stronger in 2022 against metaverse refers to a virtual-reality realm
semiconductor capabilities, especially in the ringgit for an average of RM4.16 where users can communicate via a com-
leading edge front-end fabrication to be compared to 2020’s average of RM4.14. puter-based environment.
self-sufficient on the back of national stra-
tegic and security interests. Tan said HLIB also expected tech- Tan said although IoT devices gener-
nology firms to be marginally boosted as ally have lower integrated circuit content,
“KLTEC (Bursa Technology index) their sales are majority denominated in the sheer forecasted volume demand for
outperformed the broader index in 2021 US dollars and partly offset by the US such products suggests that this market
(KLTEC +39% vs KLCI -4%). The lat- dollar-denominated cost. is too big to ignore.
est industry average growth projection of
23% exceeds our initial estimate of 20%. “Gold, aluminium, copper and steel “Lastly, demand from (the) automo-
prices are on the upward trajectories and tive (sector) is expected to be solid as
“As for 2022, the sector is expected to may spell bad news for tech players. Pric- electric/autonomous vehicles require sig-
be in expansionary mode with 8%. Capi- ier commodities will exert pressures on nificantly higher semiconductor content,”
tal spending is expected to reach another margins for packagers and equipment Tan said.
record on the back of strong fab (semi- makers.
conductor fabrication plant) construction Tan said Frontken Corp Bhd, UWC
pipeline. “However, we are not overly concerned Bhd and Kobay Technology Bhd are
as industry wide capacity constraint posi- HLIB’s top picks in the Malaysian tech-
“Stronger greenback outlook may boost tions tech players with stronger bargain- nology sector.
the sector’s prospect. We are not overly ing power to pass through higher material
concerned on the rising input prices as costs,” he said. HLIB, which reiterated its buy call for
tech players are believed to be able pass Frontken shares, has a higher target price
through the additional costs. Growth is (TP) of RM4.42 for the stock, compared
expected to be driven by smartphone, to the previously-estimated RM4.15, ac-
communication, HPC (high-performance cording to him.
computing), IoT (Internet ofThings) and
auto,” Tan said. Tan said HLIB also reiterated its
buy calls for UWC and Kobay, with
unchanged TPs at RM6.52 and RM8
respectively.

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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): State and NADMA orders 2,917 assets from various agencies.
district level disaster operation control disaster control According to NADMA, 50 road loca-
centres in Sarawak and Sabah have been centres in Sabah
ordered to make preparations, including and Sarawak to tions in States still affected by floods were
activating on-site control posts, to face brace for floods being cleaned based on a disaster report
the possibility of floods. from the Public Works Department as of
Bernama 10am on Wednesday.
National Disaster Management Agen-
cy (NADMA) said the order was issued As of noon onWednesday, the number “The Mineral and Geoscience Depart-
following a forecast of a monsoon surge of flood evacuees in relief centres in Mel- ment also reported five more landslides,
capable of bringing continuous rain issued aka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang and Sabah three in Sabah and one each in Kuala
by the Malaysian Meteorological Depart- have dropped, while Terengganu has fully Lumpur and Negeri Sembilan, bringing
ment (MetMalaysia). recovered from floods with the closure of the total of landslides nationwide through-
all relief centres in the State. out the North East Monsoon period to
NADMA also said that the SocialWelfare 250 cases,” the statement read.
Department needed to ensure the availability Flood operations nationwide have in-
of supplies for forward bases in Sabah and volved 17,901 responders and utilised Also, post-flood cleanup operations by
Sarawak in the event of flooding. the Housing and Local Government Min-
istry along with the Environment andWa-
“As part of its preparedness, the Sarawak ter Ministry had cleaned 90% of flood-hit
disaster operation control centre needs to areas in Selangor as of Wednesday.
coordinate the delivery of information to Read also:
residents in flood-prone areas so that they Umno proposes special Parliament sitting
are prepared if disaster strikes,” NADMA on floods Click here
said in a statement onWednesday. Floods: Police to have five boats at disposal
for every district HQ — Bukit Aman
A significant weather forecast for the pe- Click here
riod of Jan 6 to 12 issued by MetMalaysia on Drop in number of flood victims in five
Wednesday stated that a cold front is expect- states Click here
ed to occur in Sarawak from Sunday (Jan 9).

The department said that the conditions
would cause increased humidity that will po-
tentially lead to continuous rain and flooding,
especially in the central and west divisions
of Sarawak, and at the same time, thunder-
storms may occur throughout the country in
the mornings and evenings till night.

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 5): Efforts to reduce the Govt to focus on KPDNHEP said enforcement opera-
people’s cost of living and give consumers people-centric tions will continue to be carried out via
a cheaper price option like what was imple- programmes Ops Cakna, Ops Pasar and Ops Menu to
mented last year will be extended this year to help reduce ensure that no parties take advantage of
with several people-centric programmes, cost of living the floods that hit the country.
said the Ministry of Domestic Trade and
Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP). Bernama On assistance for flood victims, KPDN-
HEP through the FloodVolunteer Squad
In a statement on Wednesday (Jan 5), MOHAMAD SHAHRIL BASRI/THE EDGE (SSB-KPDNHEP) has helped victims in
KPDNHEP said the programmes include Selangor, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Mel-
sales campaigns such as BackTo School as The Keluarga Malaysia Maximum Price Control aka, Kelantan and Kuala Lumpur through
well as during festive seasons and nation- Scheme, which was launched on Dec 7 to stabilise post-flood clean-up activities.
al month celebration to give consumers a
choice to make planned purchases. the prices of basic necessities, will be extended The ministry through Food Bank Ma-
until Feb 4 this year. laysia has also channelled aid in the form of
The Keluarga Malaysia Maximum ready-to-eat food products to the victims.
Price Control Scheme, which was
launched on Dec 7 to stabilise the pric- To date, SSB-KPDNHEP has helped a
es of basic necessities, will be extended total of 171 families affected by the flood
until Feb 4 this year, whereas the Malay- disaster in Shah Alam, Banting, Dengkil,
sian Family Sales Programme that began Sepang, Kapar, Semenyih, Klang, Puchong
on Dec 2 will continue to be held until and Pahang, while a total of RM344,200 in
March, it said. the form of ready-to-eat food items has been
channelled through Food Bank Malaysia.
KPDNHEP added that the cashless re-
tail transaction initiative, namely the Retail Meanwhile, the ministry said the sales
Digitalisation Initiative, will be expanded value of wholesale and retail trade rose 5.4%
nationwide after being implemented in to RM116.4 billion in October 2021 from
Terengganu and Sarawak last year. RM110.5 billion in 2020.

The initiative, among others, aims at “This shows that the sector regulated by
encouraging the registration of e-wallets the ministry is still recording positive devel-
by consumers in making transactions and opment even though the country is facing
creating a cashless community ecosystem. the Covid-19 pandemic as well as floods and
rising prices of goods,” KPDNHEP added.

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HOME

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5):The police ar- ‘Datuk’ among “To date, a total of 23 cases are being
rested 10 individuals, including a man car- 10 individuals investigated related to GCG Asia’s forex in-
rying the title “Datuk”, for their suspected arrested over vestment fraud involving losses amounting
involvement in fraudulent forex investment to RM2.9 million,” he said.
schemes in five states on Saturday (Jan 1). bogus forex
investment He said nine of the suspects were under
Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Inves- remand untilWednesday, while another was
tigation Department director Datuk Mohd scheme remanded on Tuesday, and an application
Kamarudin Md Din said they comprised to extend their remand order was currently
nine men and a woman aged 29 to 64, de- Bernama underway.
tained in Perak, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur,
Melaka and Johor. “The syndicate will then sever commu- Four of the suspects were also found to
nication with investors after getting a sub- have fraud-related criminal records.
He said also seized were various items stantial amount of investment and stop the
including nine luxury vehicles, 64 watch- operation of the investment scheme abruptly. Kamarudin said based on investigations
es and five gold ingots weighing five kilo- Dissatisfied investors will feel cheated for not so far, noVIPs or dignitaries were involved
grammes, estimated to be worth almost getting the promised returns. with the syndicate.
RM127 million.
“The 40-year-old mastermind holds the
“The syndicate is known as GCG Asia title of Datuk, who calls himself ‘Datuk Seri’
Forex Investments and has been active since under their modus operandi. He also has
2018, and the suspects concerned were act- a Master’s degree in Business Administra-
ing as brokers, investor searching agents, fi- tion,” he said.
nancial managers and account holders.
He advised the public to remain vigilant
“The syndicate targets locals as victims and not to be easily fooled by advertisements
and they promote forex-based investments promoting investment schemes on social me-
with a weekly rate of return of between 12% dia such as Facebook,WhatsApp,WeChat.
to 14% of the total capital invested,” he said
in a special press conference onWednesday He said people should first check if the
(Jan 5). companies offering such investments were
licensed by Bank Negara Malaysia to do so.
Mohd Kamarudin said the syndicate
promised investors that their money would “Also verify their accounts and phone
be invested by GCG Asia in various medi- lines through the website http://ccid.rmp.
ums to generate huge profits. gov.my/semakmule/ to know whether they
have been involved in fraud cases reported
According to him, investors will be giv- previously.
en an investment website link, along with a
password, and they will be able to see the “Please report to the CCID Scam Re-
amount of “profits earned”, however, it can- sponse Centre at 03-26101559 or 03-
not be transferred or cashed out. 26101599 if you have any information re-
garding fraud syndicates found on social
media,” he added.

GEORGE TOWN (Jan 5): Losses due Losses to about the risk of scams using communi-
to commercial crimes rose drastically in commercial cation technology.
Penang, registering a 225.4% rise, with losses crimes rose by
of RM537 million recorded last year com- over 200% in Meanwhile, Mohd Suhaily said the
pared with RM165 million in 2020. Penang last year Penang Narcotics Crime Investigation De-
partment (NCID) seized various drugs
Penang police chief Datuk Mohd Shu- Bernama worth RM113.92 million last year thanks
haily Mohd Zain said there were 3,209 cases to increased operations, intelligence and po-
of commercial crime compared with 2,453 lice presence on the field.
cases in 2020.
He said the total of the seized drugs in-
“Commercial crime rose drastically in creased by RM65.18 million last year, com-
2021...it is a new frightening phenomenon pared with RM48.74 million in 2020.
during Covid-19 as more people interacted
in the virtual world. “A total of 7,688 people were arrested last
year for drug offences, with 1,976 detained
“It is a new challenge for us who are hard under the supply category, 4,197 people un-
pressed for police expertise to investigate cy- der the possession category and 1,515 people
ber cases and scams in the virtual world. under the urine category,” he said.
The victims of scams are from all layers of
society, including senior citizens, profession- He added that the police expect drug
als, semi professionals, labourers, students, smuggling and trafficking activities to con-
civil servants and those in the private sector, tinue to rise as those in the illicit trade were
whether in urban or rural areas,” he told aggressive and did not fear the law, apart
reporters during the Penang police contin- from demand from addicts.
gent’s monthly gathering here onWednesday.
“As such, the police will increase intelli-
He said the Penang Commercial Crime gence work to curb drug smuggling and traf-
Investigation Department will take more ficking activities so our strategy this year is to
aggressive and comprehensive preventive tackle the issue of drug abuse and see how
measures by creating public awareness it will impact property and violent crimes,”
he said.

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WORLD

Kazakh protesters torch public buildings,
emergency declared, Cabinet resigns

ALMATY (Jan 5): Kazakhstan declared BY OLZHAS AUYEZOV tion denied the liberalisation seen in other
emergencies in the capital, main city and Reuters ex-Soviet states.
provinces onWednesday after demonstra-
tors stormed and torched public buildings, REUTERS “I think there is an underlying un-
the worst unrest for more than a decade in dercurrent of frustrations in Kazakhstan
the tightly controlled country. Kazakh law enforcement officers are seen on a over the lack of democracy,” saidTim Ash,
barricade during a protest triggered by fuel price emerging market strategist at BlueBay As-
The Cabinet resigned, but that failed increase in Almaty, Kazakhstan January 5, 2022. set Management.
to quell the anger of the demonstrators,
who have taken to the streets in response into a police car and a white van as some “Young, internet savvy Kazakhs, espe-
to a fuel price increase from the start of chanted “Nazarbayev, go away!” cially in Almaty, likely want similar free-
the new year. doms as Ukrainians, Georgians, Moldo-
In the city of Aqtobe, what appeared to vans, Kyrgyz and Armenians, who have
Though the unrest was triggered by the be several hundred protesters gathered on also vented their frustrations over the years
price rise, there were signs of broader po- a square shouting: “Old Man, go away!”. with authoritarian regimes.”
litical demands in a country still under the A video posted online showed police using
shadow of three decades of one-man rule. water cannon and stun grenades against Kazakhstan is a close ally of Russia.
protesters near the mayor’s office there. The Kremlin said it expected the coun-
Nursultan Nazarbayev, 81, took office Bonds plunge try to quickly resolve its internal problems,
as president of the former Soviet republic Nazarbayev’s hand-picked successor, Pres- warning other countries against interfering.
in 1990 and only stepped down in 2019. ident Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, accepted
He retained authority as ruling party boss the Cabinet’s resignation on Wednesday Atameken, Kazakhstan’s business lob-
and head of a powerful security council. and ordered acting ministers to reverse the by group, said its members were reporting
fuel price rise. attacks on banks, stores and restaurants.
An Instagram live stream by a Kazakh The city health department said 190 peo-
blogger showed a fire blazing in the office Tokayev also named a new first deputy ple had sought medical help, including 137
of the mayor of the main city, Almaty, with head of the National Security Commit- police. City authorities urged residents to
apparent gunshots audible nearby. Vide- tee to replace a nephew of Nazarbayev. stay home.
os posted online also showed the nearby Nazarbayev himself has not commented
prosecutor’s office burning. or convened the security council since the The interior ministry said government
unrest began. buildings were also attacked in the south-
Earlier on Wednesday, Reuters journal- ern cities of Shymkent andTaraz overnight,
ists saw thousands of protesters pressing Kazakhstan’s reputation for political with 95 police wounded in clashes. Police
towards Almaty city centre, some of them stability under Nazarbayev has helped it have detained more than 200 people.
on a large truck. Security forces, ranked attract hundreds of billions of dollars of
in helmets and riot shields, fired tear gas foreign investment in its oil and metals Kazakhstan has been grappling with ris-
and flash-bang grenades. industries. ing price pressures. Inflation was closing
in on 9% year-on-year late last year — its
The city’s police chief said Almaty was The unrest saw the price of Kazakh- highest level in more than five years —
under attack by “extremists and radicals”, stan’s dollar bonds plunge by nearly 6 forcing the central bank to raise interest
who had beaten up 500 civilians and ran- cents, the worst showing since the height rates to 9.75%.
sacked hundreds of businesses. of the coronavirus market collapse of 2020.
Tokayev acknowledged the government
A presidential decree announced a two- Analysts said the veneer of stability has had botched the lifting of a cap on the
week state of emergency and nighttime masked anger among a younger genera- price of liquefied petroleum gas from Jan
curfew in the capital Nur-Sultan — named 1, which saw the cost more than double.
after the former president. It cited a “seri- The low-cost fuel is used by many Kazakhs
ous and direct security threat to citizens”. to power their cars with pressurised tanks.

States of emergency were also declared Tokayev ordered the LPG price cap
in Almaty and in the westerly Mangistau restored and extended to gasoline, diesel
province, where protests first broke out. and other “socially important” goods. He
also ordered the government to develop
Reuters journalists reported the internet a personal bankruptcy law and consider
had been shut down as the unrest spread. freezing utility prices and subsidising rent
Netblocks, a site that monitors global in- payments.
ternet connectivity, said Kazakhstan was
“in the midst of a nation-scale internet He said the situation was improving
blackout”. in protest-hit cities and towns, including
Almaty and the surrounding province,
Though the unrest was triggered by a where the authorities declared a state
fuel price rise, there were signs of broad- of emergency.
er political demands in a country still
under the shadow of three decades of A source familiar with the situation said
one-man rule. some workers at Mangistaumunaigas, a
Kazakh-Chinese oil-producing joint ven-
Footage showed police and security offi- ture based in Mangistau province, were
cials in civilian clothes breaking up a small on strike, although this was not affecting
group of protesters in the city of Shym- output.
kent, hauling away men and pushing them

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WORLD

(Jan 5): German energy giant Uniper SE German energy Power hedging
was forced to borrow billions to pay down giant Uniper gets This is the second time in less than six
margin calls — the collateral that exchang- US$11 billion for months that the company has been forced
es require to back up trades — as European to prop up liquidity as energy prices climb.
gas and electricity prices rallied. margin calls The utility first disclosed additional capital
needs in its third-quarter earnings in No-
Uniper got additional loans totaling 10 BY ISIS ALMEIDA & SIMON CASEY vember. At the time it said it had hedged
billion euros (US$11.3 billion) from its Bloomberg 90% of German power for 2022 at 49
Finnish parent Fortum Oyj and KfW IP- euros a megawatt-hour and 90% for 2023
EX-Bank, the company said in a statement already been used.The company has also at 51 euros.
after the close of trading on Tuesday.The fully drawn the existing 1.8 billion-euro
borrowing facilities correspond to about credit facility it has with its core banks. It Since then, prices soared. German elec-
two-thirds of the company’s market value further tapped 2 billion from KfW on Jan. tricity for 2022 expired at almost 220 euros,
of just over 15 billion euros. 4 as “a back-up facility in case of further more than four times the price that Uniper
extreme commodity market developments.” had sold at.The contract for 2023 delivery
Europe is suffering an energy crunch, is currently trading at 140.50 euros.
with Russia curbing gas supplies just as
demand is rebounding. Gas and power “The quantum of these facilities shows
prices broke records several days last year, how extreme recent commodity price
and while a flotilla of US liquefied natural movements have been and the impact on
gas cargoes cooled the rally in the second the margining payments for Uniper’s sold
half of December, prices are now on the forward volumes,” analysts at RBC said
rise again. in a note. While it should have “no real
impact on near-term earnings,” the “key
“Higher commodity prices lead to takeaway here is the significant cash/credit/
temporarily higher margining require- working capital positions that are needed
ments,” Uniper said. “At the same time, by market participants.”
higher commodity prices increase the val-
ue of Uniper’s underlying gas and pow- Commodities trader Gunvor Group
er assets. Therefore, Uniper’s structur- Ltd. also faced about US$1 billion in mar-
al earnings prospects are not adversely gin calls last year, according to people fa-
impacted.” miliar with the matter. The largest inde-
pendent LNG trader in December signed
The European gas market had its most a US$1.14 billion loan to trade the fuel
volatile year on record in 2021, with prices shortly after with lenders including Rabo-
surging as much as 40% in just one day in bank and Societe Generale SA.
October.The enormous gains meant some
companies had to tap additional funds, Energy firms were also faced with ex-
while several small energy suppliers fold- treme volatility at the end of last year, when
ed. RWE AG also had “additional liquid- gas prices surged all the way through March
ity requirements,” Chief Financial Officer 2023.The fuel for delivery in the summer
Michael Muller said in November. — when gas is usually cheap — exceeded
100 euros a megawatt-hour at one point in
Uniper got an 8 billion-euro credit line December, the highest on record.
from Fortum on Dec 22, part of which has

(Jan 5): OPEC made only part of its OPEC output largest export terminal — production is
planned production increase last month, boost severely sinking to just 700,000 daily barrels.
with supplies hampered by disruptions in
two of the group’s African members. limited as In Nigeria, Royal Dutch Shell Plc
African members warned of difficulties with shipments of
The Organization of Petroleum Export- crude oil from its Forcados terminal —
ing Countries added just 90,000 barrels struggle one of the country’s largest — during the
a day in December, as a boost by Saudi last 10 days of the month.The Bonny ter-
Arabia was offset by losses in Libya and BY GRANT SMITH & JULIAN LEE minal, also operated by Shell, has also had
Nigeria, according to a Bloomberg survey. Bloomberg trouble loading cargoes. The country’s
output was down 110,000 barrels a day
The OPEC+ coalition led by Saudi Libya’s production is in turmoil again to 1.42 million.
Arabia and Russia has been restoring after the country enjoyed a year of recovery
production halted during the pandemic, and stabilization. Output began to falter Ten of OPEC’s 13 members were per-
and on Tuesday agreed to press on with after militias shut the country’s biggest oil mitted to add roughly 250,000 barrels a
further increases at a rate of 400,000 field, Sharara, ending the month down by day last month under the terms of the
barrels a day. But the process has been 70,000 barrels a day at 1.06 million.With group’s accord with the wider coalition,
hindered as some members struggle with the outage dragging on — and compound- but their combined hike amounted to only
investment constraints and internal in- ed by damage to a pipeline connecting the 150,000.While Angola managed a modest
stability. recovery last month, its output is down
almost three times the amount required
The coalition’s travails are helping to by the agreement.
support oil prices even as global markets Click here to read the full story
tip back into oversupply, with Brent crude
futures trading near US$80 a barrel in
London on Wednesday.

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WORLD

(Jan 5): China’s tech stocks fell once again China tech Online pressure
Wednesday as firms backed by Tencent selloff deepens Among Tencent-backed companies,
Holdings Ltd. came under pressure after asTencent sale live-streaming platform operator Bilibili
it pared investment in the sector for a sec- spooks traders dropped as much as 9.4% while food de-
ond time in two weeks. livery giant Meituan dropped as much as
BY ABHISHEK VISHNOI 11%. China’s No. 2 online retailer JD.com
The Hang SengTech Index fell as much Bloomberg fell as much as 7.5% and Tencent declined
as 4.2% — the most since September — as much as 4.2%.
in a third day of declines, with overnight REUTERS
weakness in US peers also weighing.The “China is at the stage of implementing
gauge is set for the lowest close since its On a more positive note, Alibaba Group Holding many tightened policies and rules that the
inception in July 2020 with Tencent in- Ltd. outperformed after Daily Journal Corp., government announced last year on the
vestees Bilibili Inc., Meituan and JD.com technology sector,” said LinusYip, a strat-
Inc. among the biggest losers. a newspaper and software business that counts egist at First Shanghai Securities. “The
Charlie Munger as chairman, nearly doubled range-bound trading and heightened vol-
The Chinese tech giant cut its stake in its holding of the Chinese internet giant atility may last through the first quarter.”
Singapore’s Sea Ltd. onTuesday — selling in recent months.
US$3 billion of shares — sparking con- The recent spike in USTreasury yields
cerns of similar actions at other firms amid vestment in the country’s internet space has also weighed on tech stocks across Asia.
Beijing’s regulatory crackdown. China’s in the coming months,” Bloomberg Intelli- The MSCI AC Asia Pacific Communica-
US-listed tech shares fell overnight amid gence analyst Cecilia Chan wrote in a note. tion Services Index dropped as much as
a broad selloff in the sector, with traders 2.1%, the most since Dec. 20. SoftBank
worried about the rise in Treasury yields Tencent controlled a portfolio of in- Group Corp.-backed search engine opera-
putting pressure on stocks with extended vestments worth US$185 billion at the tor Z Holdings Corp. fell as much as 4.2%
valuations. end of September, Bloomberg Intelligence while chipmaker Samsung Electronics Co.
estimates. declined as much as 2.9%.
Drubbing in tech marks biggest new-
year stock rotation since ’95 The Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers
Tencent’s move is aiding expectations that gauge, which carries shares of small- and me-
the firm and its rivals may pare holdings as dium-sized software-technology companies,
Beijing punishes the country’s tech giants dropped 5% to the lowest since May 2020.
for anti-competitive behavior, including
maintaining closed ecosystems that favor On a more positive note, Alibaba Group
certain firms at the expense of others. Last Holding Ltd. outperformed after Daily
month the company said it plans to distrib- Journal Corp., a newspaper and software
ute more than US$16 billion of JD.com’s business that counts Charlie Munger as
shares as a one-time dividend. chairman, nearly doubled its holding of the
Chinese internet giant in recent months.
“China’s anti-monopoly rules and reg-
ulators’ concerns about data privacy as Read also:Tencent sale takes losses to US$10
well as Web security may lead to more di- billion for Internet mogul Click here

HONG KONG (Jan 5): Shares of Chi- China Huarong shares in April 2021 after missing a March
na Huarong Asset Management Co Ltd halves in value as 31 deadline for filing its 2020 earnings.
plunged as much as 55% in Hong Kong on trading resumes
Wednesday to a record low, after trading re- In August, Huarong announced a nearly
sumed following a nine-month hiatus, even BY DONNY KWOK & SAMUEL SHEN US$16 billion annual loss for 2020, and in
as the bad loan company said its restructur- Reuters November, it unveiled its restructuring plan.
ing had paved the way for healthy growth.
Huarong has raised 42 billion yuan from Huarong said onWednesday that it had
Huarong, which counts China’s finance investors led by Citic Group in a state- sold shares through private placement to
ministry as its largest shareholder, suffered backed restructuring. strategic investors at 1.02 yuan apiece,
huge losses and its former chairman was boosting the company’s net asset value
convicted of bribery, leading to a state- Strategic investors have replenished (NAV) per share by 60% to 0.75 yuan.
backed bailout last year. capital and “laid the ground for sustain-
able and healthy growth”,Vice President The placement price, which is much
Huarong shares traded as low as HK$0.46 WangWenjie said in a speech that was post- higher than the NAV, reflects “investors’
(US$0.0590) onWednesday,more than halv- ed on Huarong’s website. “The company optimism toward the company’s long-term
ing the company’s value during its previous has the ability, and condition, to generate growth prospectus”, and is good for small
trading session on March 31, 2021. returns for our shareholders.” investors, a Huarong official said.
Share suspension
The price is also the lowest since Hua- Huarong, one of four major state-owned dis- The company reiterated onWednesday
rong’s listing in 2015, and represents a tressed-debt managers, halted trading in its that it will focus on its core business going
nearly 50% discount to the company’s net forward, and seek synergies with strategic
asset value, reflecting investor pessimism. investors.

In an apparent effort to inject some op- Huarong has previously announced a
timism, Huarong’s management said on slew of asset divestment deals, including
Wednesday that recent capital injections stake sales in its consumer finance, securi-
by strategic investors would breathe new ties and distressed asset exchange business-
life into the company. es, amid a regulatory push to sell non-core
assets in its business revamp.

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WORLD

US companies BLOOMBERG
add most jobs in
seven months,
ADP data show

BY OLIVIA ROCKEMAN & CHRIS MIDDLETON
Bloomberg

NEW YORK (Jan 5): US companies in could indicate that employers had more Strength in Services
December added the most jobs in seven success hiring in December, as higher wag- Service-provider employment rose by
months, indicating that more Americans es and attractive working terms lured peo- 669,000 in December, the most since June,
are returning to the labour force and help- ple off the sidelines. Even so, a surge in led by leisure and hospitality.
ing employers to fill a near-record number Covid-19 infections in recent weeks could
of open positions. impact hiring if more Americans pull back Payrolls at goods producers increased
on activities like travel and restaurant din- 138,000, the strongest since September
Businesses’ payrolls grew by 807,000 ing and businesses struggle to stay open. 2020.
last month, after a downwardly revised
505,000 gain in November, according The data precede Friday’s monthly Companies with more than 500 workers
to ADP Research Institute data released jobs report from the Labor Department, added 389,000, the most jobs since June
Wednesday. The median forecast in a which is currently forecast to show that 2020. Small businesses posted a gain of
Bloomberg survey of economists called for the US added 384,000 private payrolls in 204,000 in December, which was the most
a 410,000 rise. December. ADP’s data don’t always align in six months.
with those of the government because of
“Job gains were broad-based, as goods different measurement techniques. ADP’s payroll data represent firms em-
producers added the strongest reading of ploying nearly 26 million workers in the
the year, while service providers dominat- US.
ed growth,” ADP Chief Economist Nela
Richardson said in a statement.

The larger-than-expected payrolls gain

Kishida urges
Japanese firms
to boost pay for
economy’s sake

BY YUKO TAKEO
Bloomberg

(Jan 5): Japanese Prime Minister Fumio show some success in cajoling businesses For its part, Keidanren has counselled
Kishida urged big Japanese businesses to to raise pay during wage negotiations in firms whose profitability has yet to recover
boost worker pay this year in a bid to get the next few months, along with contain- from the pandemic to focus on maintain-
firms to sign up to his new form of capital- ing a winter wave of the Omicron variant. ing employment. Lower pay in exchange
ism and help the economy rebound from for job security has been a trade-off in Ja-
the Covid-19 pandemic. Still, Kishida seemed to have softened pan for years.
his approach since late last year, when the
“Wage hikes from firms are extremely country’s biggest business lobby Keidan- “We have to turn the tide,” Kishida said.
important for economic growth,” Kishi- ren rebuffed his calls for a 3% pay hike. “The rebound from the Covid-19 crisis
da said in a speech on Wednesday (Jan and the challenge of a new era together
5) to major business lobbies in Tokyo. “I This time, the premier demanded no create a moment that must be seized firmly
ask that you take an aggressive stance on specific pay-hike goal, suggesting an aware- by both the public and private sectors.”
offering higher pay to help the Japanese ness that his target may be difficult to hit.
economy.”

Kishida came to power last year pledg-
ing to boost middle-class incomes and cre-
ate a new brand of capitalism that spreads
prosperity more widely.To win the gener-
al election this summer, he may need to

T H U R S D A Y J A N U A R Y 6 , 2 0 2 2 20 T H E E D G E C E O M O R N I N G B R I E F

WORLD

Even the world’s
top palm oil
producer is
worried about
prices

BY EKO LISTIYORINI
Bloomberg

(Jan 5): Indonesia, the world’s top oil palm That added to concerns about global food pledging to supply as much as 11 million
grower, is finding it isn’t immune to the inflation at a time when supply chains are liters to retailers, but prices still hit 18,500
impact of soaring prices as it plans to sub- hit by bad weather, Covid-19 disruptions rupiah in December.
sidize cooking oil sold locally. and labor shortages. Prices are expected to
stay elevated in the first quarter. The soaring prices are due to a lack
The government will spend 3.6 trillion of market efficiency rather than a supply
rupiah (US$250 million) of funds raised Indonesia has sounded caution about shortage. Indonesia only consumes 5.1 mil-
from palm oil export levy to temper cooking inflation after a year of muted price gains.A lion tons of the 8 million tons of cooking
oil prices by paying for the price gap and market intervention to stabilize costs during oil it produces, but many companies aren’t
scrapping tax on 1.2 billion liters of edible Christmas and NewYear hasn’t stopped the integrated with local palm oil growers, the
oil, Coordinating Minister for Economic surge in edible oil.The government asked trade ministry said. Instead, the cooking
Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said in a press producers to sell simple packaged cook- oil producers buy at prices influenced by
briefing on Wednesday. ing oil at 14,000 a liter, with companies volatile global prices.

Palm oil, the world’s most consumed
edible oil, surged to a record in October
and posted a third straight year of gains.

JAKARTA (Jan 5): Indonesian e-com- Bukalapak, Grab said, noting Bukalapak.com has agreed to
merce firm Bukalapak.com and con- unit among buy 1.2 trillion rupiah of Mega Corpora’s
glomerate Salim Group will subscribe to pre-emptive rights, while Salim Group’s
a planned 4.8 trillion rupiah (US$335.55 firms buying into Indolife Investama Perkasa will buy 623
million) rights issue by digital lender Allo Indonesia digital billion rupiah worth of shares.
Bank due to be launched next week, the bank rights issue
bank said. Mega Corpora has also sold its rights
BY GAYATRI SUROYO to Abadi Investments, H Holdings,Trusty
Car marketplace Carro, a subsidiary Reuters Cars, and CT Corpora.
of ride hailing and food delivery firm
Grab, online travel startup Traveloka and to the stock exchange on Monday. The companies in the joint statement
Growtheum Capital Partners will also par- Tanjung’s Mega Corpora will lift its in- did not disclose the size of each invest-
ticipate in the rights issue, the companies ment. Allo Bank’s core capital will increase
said in a joint statement with other inves- vestment in the bank by 1.3 trillion rupiah to more than 6 trillion rupiah after the
tors and Allo Bank on Wednesday. through the rights issue, the prospectus rights issue, the statement said.

Allo Bank, controlled by Indonesian REUTERS The ecosystem of the companies in-
tycoon Chairul Tanjung, plans to sell volved will give Allo Bank access to cus-
more than 10 billion shares at 478 ru- tomers and merchants in retail, commerce,
piah a piece on Jan 13-19, according to ride hailing and delivery, travel and autos,
Allo Bank’s rights issue prospectus filed they said.

Allo Bank obtained a digital banking
permit last year and will be competing
with an increasing number of digital lend-
ers, including digital units of the coun-
try’s biggest lenders Bank Central Asia
and Bank Rakyat Indonesia, as well as
tech firm GoTo’s Bank Jago, fintech Aku-
Laku’s Bank Neo Commerce and Sin-
gapore-based Sea’s SeaBank Indonesia.

Southeast Asia is one of the world’s
fastest growing internet markets, accord-
ing to a report by Alphabet’s Google, Sin-
gapore state investor Temasek Holdings
and global business consultants Bain &
Company.

T H U R S D A Y J A N U A R Y 6 , 2 0 2 2 21 T H E E D G E C E O M O R N I N G B R I E F

WORLD

China Premier Energy
Li urges bigger investment
firm Aethon
tax cuts to plans US$6bil
ensure economic Louisiana sale
— sources
growth
BY DAVID FRENCH
BY JOHN LIU & APRIL MA Reuters
Bloomberg
(Jan 5): US oil and gas-focused invest-
BEIJING (Jan 5): China needs larger cuts lion yuan (US$17.3 billion) have been ment firm Aethon Energy Manage-
in taxes and fees in order to ensure steady extended, according to a State Council ment is exploring a sale of its acreage in
economic growth in the first quarter amid statement last week. North Louisiana which could be valued
fresh downward pressures, said Premier at around US$6 billion, including debt,
Li Keqiang, urging more support for the No details on the proposed new tax people familiar with the matter said.
most fragile parts of the economy. cuts were given.
Bankers hired by Aethon reached out
On top of extending tax cuts that have Local governments were also urged to in the final weeks of 2021 to a small num-
expired, China mustdeepen the cuts, with come up with measures to crack down ber of potential buyers to gauge initial
more deductions for research and devel- on tax evasion and curb excessive fees. interest in its Haynesville assets in North
opment spending, and special support Louisiana, the sources said, ahead of a
for the service sector and other areas that The world’s second-biggest econo- formal sale process later this year. Ae-
have been heavily impacted by the pan- my is facing rising pressure on multiple thon’s assets in the East Texas portion of
demic, China National Radio cited Li as fronts, with policy makers focusing ef- the Haynesville shale formation are not
saying at a special meeting on the issue. forts on stabilizing growth with “proac- part of the process, the sources added.
tive” policies.
The call for greater cuts comes as The sources, who spoke on condition
as the government seeks to encourage The housing market is struggling, lo- of anonymity to discuss confidential in-
household spending as part of efforts to cal government finances are being hit formation, cautioned there was no guar-
stimulate economic growth. Personal in- by weak land sales and there has been antee that Aethon would complete a sale.
come tax breaks worth around 110 bil- a series of recent Covid-19 outbreaks,
including one which caused authorities A spokesperson for Aethon declined
to lock down the city of Xi’an. to comment.

(Jan 5): Auto sales in Germany skidded German car The Dallas-based firm was founded
last year to the lowest since at least 1990 sales plummet in 1990 by veteran oil and gas investor
as the chip supply crisis thwarted hopes Albert Huddleston, and has gone on to
for recovery from the pandemic. to lowest in acquire and develop energy assets across
more than three a number of US shale plays.
New-car registrations plunged 27% in
December, the country’s vehicle authori- decades This includes creating a sizable posi-
ty KBA saidWednesday, leaving sales for tion in the gassy Haynesville formation
the year at 2.62 million vehicles. That’s BY STEFAN NICOLA of Louisiana and East Texas.
10% lower than an already poor 2020, Bloomberg
when the initial outbreak of Covid-19 A number of privately-owned Haynes-
shuttered factories and kept buyers away ville gas producers went up for sale in
from showrooms. 2021, as owners capitalized on a rebound
in natural gas prices — which hit a 12-
Automakers from Volkswagen AG to year high in October — to offload long-
Stellantis NV are hoping the semicon- held investments.
ductor shortage will gradually ease this
year but have warned supply will remain The acquirers were publicly list-
tight in the first half. ed companies seeking to reduce costs
through economies of scale and bolster
Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz said this operations close to the Gulf of Mexico
week it will keep in place a task force to coast, which has emerged as a key gate-
help ease any bottlenecks that risk dis- way for U.S. exports of liquefied natural
rupting production. gas (LNG).

The numbers from Germany are in For example, Southwestern Energy Co
line with weak year-end figures across acquired Indigo Natural Resources for
the region. US$2.7 billion in September and GEP
Haynesville for US$1.85 billion in De-
New-car registrations in Spain fell by cember, and Chesapeake Energy Corp
almost a fifth in December, while Italy’s bought Vine Energy for US$615 million
sales dropped by more than a quarter, in November.
putting the industry on course to come
up short of 2020’s disastrous showing.

T H U R S D A Y J A N U A R Y 6 , 2 0 2 2 22 T H E E D G E C E O M O R N I N G B R I E F

WORLD

BLOOMBERG

Sony looks to
electric cars for
its next big hit

Goldman says vestment is estimated at US$2.6 trillion. BY SHINJI KITAMURA
Bitcoin at If Bitcoin’s share of the store of val- Reuters

US$100,000 a ue market were “hypothetically” to rise (Jan 5): Japan’s Sony Group Corp plans
possibility by to 50% over the next five years, its price to launch a company this spring to exam-
taking on gold would increase to just over US$100,000 ine entering the electric vehicle market,
for a compound annualised return of 17% looking to harness its strengths in enter-
BY ANCHALEE WORRACHATE or 18%, Zach Pandl, the co-head of glob- tainment and sensors to play a bigger role
Bloomberg al foreign exchange and emerging mar- in next-generation mobility.
ket strategy, wrote in a note on Tuesday
(Jan 5): Bitcoin will continue to take (Jan 4). The new company, Sony Mobility Inc,
market share from gold as part of comes as the Japanese tech giant is “ex-
broader adoption of digital assets, mak- Bitcoin traded around US$46,000 on ploring a commercial launch” of electric
ing the often touted price prediction of Tuesday in NewYork after climbing about vehicles, Sony chairman and president
US$100,000 (about RM419,130) by ad- 60% last year. The largest digital asset Kenichiro Yoshida told a news confer-
vocates a possibility, according to Gold- by market value hit a record of almost ence, speaking ahead of the CES tech-
man Sachs Group. US$69,000 in November. It has surged nology trade fair in the United States.
more than 4,700% since 2016.
Goldman estimated that Bitcoin’s “With our imaging and sensing, cloud,
float-adjusted market capitalisation is just Although the Bitcoin network’s con- 5G and entertainment technologies com-
under US$700 billion (about RM2.93 sumption of real resources may be an bined with our contents mastery, we be-
trillion). That accounts for a 20% share obstacle to institutional adoption, that lieve Sony is well positioned as a creative
of the “store of value” market which it won’t stop demand for the asset, the entertainment company to redefine mo-
said is comprised of Bitcoin and gold. note said. bility,” he said.
The value of gold that’s available for in-
Bitcoin has long been referred to as Although its once-dominant position
digital gold.The criticisms levied at gold in consumer electronics has been eroded
tend to apply to Bitcoin as well: It pays no by Asian rivals like South Korea’s Sam-
interest or dividends, and it doesn’t imi- sung Electronics Co, Sony still has an
tate the performance of more traditional arsenal of sophisticated technology in
assets. Advocates, meanwhile, say Bitcoin, areas such as sensors critical to autono-
like gold, serves as protection against the mous driving.
systemic abuse of fiat currencies.
It also remains one of the world’s big-
gest entertainment companies, home to
prominent video game and movie fran-
chises. Audio and entertainment systems
are increasingly a focus for next-genera-
tion vehicles.

Shares in Sony jumped 4.2% in To-
kyo after the electric vehicle plans were
announced, easily outpacing a flat Nik-
kei index.

Yoshida unveiled a prototype sport util-
ity vehicle (SUV), theVISION-S 02, which
uses the same electric vehicle platform as
the previously announced VISION-S 01
coupe that began testing on public roads
in Europe from December 2020.

He said the company saw mobility as
an “entertainment space” where passen-
gers could chose individual entertainment
options and use 5G internet connection.

Wall Street is betting heavily on elec-
tric cars and the global auto industry
has been upended by Tesla Inc, now the
world’s most valuable automaker. Many
investors also expect Apple Inc to launch
its own vehicle within the next few years.

Japan’sToyota Motor Corp in Decem-
ber committed $70 billion to electrify its
automobiles by 2030.

T H U R S D A Y J A N U A R Y 6 , 2 0 2 2 23 T H E E D G E C E O M O R N I N G B R I E F

WORLD

(Jan 5): Foreigners were net purchasers Asian stocks costs, a disruption in its supply chain, and
of Asian equities in December but the in- saw big foreign as China kicked off a sweeping crackdown
flows paled in comparison with the mas- on its tech and internet firms.
sive outflows faced throughout last year, outflows in South Korea and Taiwan, which de-
as regional stocks were hit by a strong pend heavily on its tech export revenues,
dollar and a dip in business activity due 2021 despite saw outflows worth US$22.85 billion and
to COVID-19-led curbs. US$16.25 billion last year.
Also, concerns in China’s real estate
Cross-border investors purchased Asian December buying sector, with its largest builder China Ev-
equities worth a net US$5.85 billion in ergrande Group struggling to repay its
South Korean, Taiwan, the Philippines, debt, also hit sentiment.
Vietnam, Indonesia, and India last month, “In China, the real estate challenge will
marking their biggest monthly inflow in provide a headwind for growth for 2022,
2021. BY GAURAV DOGRA

Yet, the region faced total outflows Reuters but we believe that the targeted easing
worth US$35 billion last year, the
biggest since 2008, the data showed. should spur momentum, particu-
REUTERS larly with manufacturing upgrading
“FIIs have largely shunned and green investment becoming the
Asian markets for the last couple bright spot,” said JessicaTea, senior
of months largely due to an ap- investment specialist at BNP Pari-
preciating US dollar and well per- bas asset management.
forming developed market equities, The MSCI Asia-Pacific index
while Asian peers had been grap- dropped 3.4% last year, compared
pling COVID-19 waves and reg- with the MSCI World index’s gain
ulatory actions,” said Suresh Tan- of 16.8%.
tia, senior investment strategist at Indonesia and Indian equities re-
Credit Suisse. ceived net inflows last year, how-
ever, the latter witnessed outflows
Investors were reluctant to take worth US$5.12 billion in the fourth
risks last year, especially in the re- quarter of 2021.
gion’s tech sector, due to rising Jun RongYeap, market strategist

at IG, said investors may be unwill-
ing to take more risks in India, as the coun-
try looks more vulnerable to COVID-19
risks, as just 43.6% of its population are
fully vaccinated.
“Although most Asian economies are
well into their re-opening, we think it is
still too early to expect continued FII in-
flows in the near term,” said Credit Su-
isse’s Tantia.
“Asian equities are not particularly at-
tractive given the flat-lined earnings re-
visions despite a -1.3 standard deviation
discount to global equities on P/E basis.
COVID-19 uncertainties still remain with
the rise of Omicron.”

(Jan 5): Citigroup analysts onWednesday Citigroup “meme stock” phenomenon, generous
raised their S&P 500 price target for the sees S&P 500 fiscal and monetary stimulus, booming
end of 2022, estimating it to breach the demand and price spikes.
5,000 level for the first time, as the bro- breaching
kerage expects strong corporate earnings 5,000-mark by Citigroup analysts raised their price
to continue this year. target for the S&P 500 to 5,100 from
year-end on 4,900 set in October, cautioning that a
Earnings results from S&P 500 com- robust earnings US Federal Reserve policy tightening
panies in 2021 blew past analyst esti- could pose valuation headwinds.
mates to deliver year-on-year growth in BY SIDDARTH S
the first three quarters of 52.8%, 96.3% Reuters The S&P 500 rose about 27% in
and 42.6%, respectively, according to Re- 2021, gaining more than 3% in the last
finitiv, which currently sees fourth-quar- two months alone. The index closed at
ter annual earnings growth of 22.3%. 4793.54 on Tuesday.

Companies, consumers and the broad- Upcoming quarterly results and 2022
er economy largely thrived in 2021, outlook of companies could provide the
helped by several factors such as a trans- cushion for growth, despite COVID-19
fer of power in the US government, the and supply chain woes, Citigroup analyst
Scott Chronert said.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 6 , 2 0 2 2 24 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

MARKETS

CPO RM 5,023.00109.00 OIL US$ 79.85-0.15 RM/USD 4.1947 RM/SGD 3.0932 RM/AUD 3.0382 RM/GBP 5.6800 RM/EUR 4.7411

Top 20 active stocks

NAME VOLUME CHANGE CLOSE YTD MARKET
(MIL) (RM) CHANGE CAP
(%) (RM MIL)

Key Alliance Group Bhd 441.50 0.000 0.015 0.00 46

SMTrack Bhd 436.50 0.005 0.260 36.84 146.7

XOX BHD 274.2 0.000 0.030 0 142.8

Pasukhas Group Bhd 101.3 0.000 0.025 0 35.2

Dagang NeXchange Bhd 101.1 0.015 0.840 10.53 2650.5

Bintai Kinden Corp Bhd 94.6 -0.010 0.195 -9.3 129

ATA IMS Bhd 86.7 -0.025 0.645 5.74 775.8

Lambo Group BHD 82.6 0.000 0.095 11.76 146.3

DGB Asia Bhd 80.3 0.005 0.030 0 48.7 World equity indices

Pegasus Heights Bhd 67.9 0.005 0.015 50 161.5

AT Systematization Bhd 66.5 0.000 0.030 0.00 162.4 CLOSE CHANGE CHANGE CLOSE CHANGE CHANGE

Cheetah Holdings Bhd 58.7 0.010 0.155 40.91 56.1 (%) (%)
DOW JONES 36,799.65 214.59 0.59 INDONESIA 6,662.30 -33.07 -0.49
XOX Networks Bhd 58.6 0.000 0.040 33.33 45.4

BCM Alliance Bhd 48.2 0.005 0.035 16.67 54.8 S&P 500 4,793.54 -3.02 -0.06 JAPAN 29,332.16 30.37 0.10

Ageson Bhd 43.1 0.000 0.045 12.5 70.1 NASDAQ 100 16,279.73 -222.04 -1.35 KOREA 2,953.97 -35.27 -1.18

Metronic Global Bhd 37 0.005 0.020 0 43.4 FTSE 100 7,516.97 11.82 0.16 PHILIPPINES 7,091.40 50.13 0.71

Vinvest Capital Holdings Bhd 35.8 0.010 0.465 1.09 450.6 AUSTRALIA 7,565.85 -23.91 -0.32 SINGAPORE 3,157.94 -23.20 -0.73

Trive Property Group BHD 34.3 0.025 0.060 100.00 75.8 CHINA 3,595.18 -37.15 -1.02 TAIWAN 18,499.96 -26.39 -0.14

PDZ Holdings Bhd 32.8 0.010 0.060 33.33 30.1 HONG KONG 22,907.25 -382.59 -1.64 THAILAND 1,674.21 3.93 0.24

Impiana Hotels Bhd 32.8 -0.005 0.065 -13.33 93.9 INDIA 60,269.53 413.60 0.69 VIETNAM 1,522.50 -3.08 -0.20

Data as compiled on Jan 5, 2022 Source: Bloomberg Data as compiled on Jan 5, 2022 Source: Bloomberg

Top gainers (ranked by %) Top losers (ranked by %)

NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET
(%) (‘000) CHANGE CAP (%) (‘000) CHANGE CAP
(%) (RM MIL) (%) (RM MIL)

Trive Property Group BHD 0.060 71.4 34295.4 100.00 75.8 Talam Transform Bhd 0.020 -20.000 90.0 0.00 85.9

Pegasus Heights Bhd 0.015 50.0 67,866.60 50.00 161.5 Aldrich Resources Bhd 0.040 -11.110 1450.0 0.00 40.6

Metronic Global Bhd 0.020 33.3 36958.1 0.00 43.4 IBRACO Bhd 0.525 -11.020 23.80 -11.02 286.7

Compugates Holdings BHd 0.020 33.3 2695.2 33.33 76.4 Nationwide Express Holdings 0.130 -10.340 85.7 -10.34 16.0

Marine & General Bhd 0.085 30.8 1953.7 54.55 61.5 XOX Technology Bhd 0.050 -9.090 921.9 0.00 44.7

Mclean Technologies Bhd 0.320 25.5 2964.3 33.33 63.1 Fast Energy Holdings Bhd 0.105 -8.700 7187.2 10.53 60.8

EA Holdings Bhd 0.025 25.0 9,914.10 25.00 154.3 Yong Tai Bhd 0.115 -8.000 2634.1 -11.54 155.1

MNC Wireless Bhd 0.025 25.0 7671.5 66.67 44.0 Lien Hoe Corp BHD 0.350 -7.890 3.8 -4.11 116.3

Kanger International Bhd 0.025 25.0 3040.2 25 149.5 Asia Media Group Bhd 0.130 -7.140 741.8 -10.34 31.1

DGB Asia Bhd 0.030 20.0 80289.4 0.00 48.7 Impiana Hotels Bhd 0.065 -7.140 32804.3 -13.33 93.9

Alam Maritim Resources Bhd 0.030 20.0 6891.7 20.00 45.9 Seacera Group Bhd 0.195 -7.140 10.0 -7.14 121.3

PDZ Holdings Bhd 0.060 20.0 32814.6 33.33 30.1 Niche Capital Emas Holdings 0.135 -6.900 1418.9 3.85 113.7

Coastal Contracts Bhd 1.760 19.7 11935.4 28.47 919.7 Ea Technique M Bhd 0.075 -6.250 4088.0 -6.25 39.8

Sanichi Technology Bhd 0.035 16.7 22397.0 40.00 49.1 Imaspro Corp Bhd 2.54 -5.930 794.7 2.42 203.2

Sinaran Advance Group Bhd 0.070 16.7 1708.6 16.67 49.3 SC Estate Builder Bhd 0.080 -5.880 23022.4 6.67 85.9

Mlabs Systems Bhd 0.035 16.7 1406.7 16.67 50.7 Eastland Equity Bhd 0.080 -5.880 1,301.4 -5.88 33.7

Green Ocean Corp Bhd 0.035 16.7 1276.1 16.67 73.9 Olympia Industries Bhd 0.085 -5.560 5.0 0.00 87.0

AE Multi Holdings Bhd 0.035 16.7 4404.1 16.67 75.7 Brahim’s Holdings Bhd 0.085 -5.560 2811.7 -10.53 26.1

BCM Alliance Bhd 0.035 16.7 48174.9 16.67 54.8 Zelan Bhd 0.085 -5.560 427.9 6.25 71.8

Ancom Logistics Bhd 0.260 15.6 17848.2 52.94 123.1 Greenyield Bhd 0.270 -5.260 2581.7 -1.82 90.1

Data as compiled on Jan 5, 2022 Source: Bloomberg Data as compiled on Jan 5, 2022 Source: Bloomberg

Top gainers (ranked by RM) Top losers (ranked by RM)

NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET
(RM) (‘000) CHANGE CAP (RM) (‘000) CHANGE CAP
(%) (RM MIL) (%) (RM MIL)

AEON Credit Service M Bhd 14.520 0.600 117.9 6.61 3,707.10 Nestle Malaysia Bhd 133.10 -0.90 71.4 -0.82 31212.0

PMB Technology Bhd 12.620 0.420 121.3 2.77 2,683.80 Petronas Dagangan Bhd 19.20 -0.50 337.90 -6.8 19074.3

Malaysian Pacific Industries 50.000 0.320 116 1.30 9,944.80 Genetec Technology Bhd 40.50 -0.40 367.3 2.64 2122.2

Coastal Contracts Bhd 1.760 0.290 11935.4 28.47 919.70 Kesm Industries Bhd 12.70 -0.30 10.3 3.42 546.3

Hartalega Holdings Bhd 5.750 0.230 5,158.60 0.35 19650.4 Rapid Synergy Bhd 9.40 -0.26 56.9 -5.53 1004.8

PPB Group Bhd 16.960 0.180 202.10 -0.82 24,127.30 ViTrox Corp Bhd 19.70 -0.24 84.8 -1.10 9303.7

Malaysia Airports Holdings 6.170 0.170 985.4 3.18 10,237.20 Imaspro Corp Bhd 2.54 -0.16 794.7 2.42 203.2

Hong Leong Bank Bhd 19.120 0.160 1,203.70 2.69 41,446.80 Ayer Holdings Bhd 5.45 -0.14 21.2 -2.5 407.9

Sam Engineering & Equipment 23.700 0.140 154.40 5.80 3,207.80 Hong Leong Financial Group 17.50 -0.10 121.9 0.92 20041.8

Batu Kawan Bhd 22.840 0.140 15.40 0.62 9003 Chin Hin Group Bhd 2.49 -0.10 1523.1 -4.60 2202.9

LPI Capital Bhd 14.180 0.140 10.7 0.85 5,649.10 British American Tobacco M’sia 14.10 -0.08 71.7 0.86 4026

Bintulu Port Holdings Bhd 4.930 0.130 1 2.71 2,267.80 Heineken Malaysia Bhd 21.86 -0.08 28.0 4.89 6603.9

Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd 21.920 0.120 175.4 0.64 23,627.30 KLCCP Stapled Group 6.55 -0.08 85 0 11824.9

Top Glove Corp Bhd 2.440 0.110 32,025.80 -5.79 19537.3 Genting Bhd 4.71 -0.07 3805.1 0.86 18136.2

Subur Tiasa Holdings Bhd 1.230 0.100 301.8 17.14 231.6 Pentamaster Corp Bhd 5.50 -0.07 1472.4 -0.90 3917.7

QL Resources Bhd 4.790 0.100 972.5 4.81 11657.2 TIME dotCom Bhd 4.43 -0.07 620.1 -3.7 8087.5

Paragon Union BHD 1.550 0.100 12.6 3.33 128.60 Toyo Ventures Holdings Bhd 1.40 -0.07 18.1 -0.71 149.8

Southern Acids Malaysia BHD 3.950 0.090 28.50 2.33 540.90 IBRACO Bhd 0.53 -0.07 23.8 -11.02 286.7

Kuchai Development BHD 1.870 0.090 6.7 3.89 231.4 Genting Malaysia Bhd 2.90 -0.06 7203.9 0.69 16394.3

Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd 1.960 0.090 11,745.2 2.08 5,001.2 Scientex BHD 4.89 -0.06 424.7 2.09 7584.4

Data as compiled on Jan 5, 2022 Source: Bloomberg Data as compiled on Jan 5, 2022 Source: Bloomberg